Summary
IAIN Macwhirter suggests swingeing increases on drink duty might be a good place to start in tackling Scotland's chronic alcohol- abuse problem, correctly pointing out that booze has perhaps never been so inexpensive or ubiquitous (December 21). Unfortunately, this would be completely pointless, as we've seen with tobacco. Huge levels of duty on cigarettes have simply led to the development of a massive personal imports and bootleg tobacco market, to the point where around 80-per cent of handrolling tobacco and perhaps a third or more of readymade cigarettes are unexcised. A new study from the University College of London also proves that if you ban smoking in pubs you displace it into homes - particularly in deprived areas - so there are strict limits on how you can affect public behaviour by legislation (also witness the ubiquity of cheap illegal drugs in young adult culture).
Cromwellian tactics won't work, and the upcoming new licensing laws - which contain a great deal more detail than has ever appeared in the public press - will, at least, finally address issues such as cheap drink promotions: but more needs to be done. Licensing boards need to address as a matter of dire urgency the number of big, cheap, youth-orientated drinking-halls they allow to open in town and city centres, and in the off-trade there has to be immediate action on the supermarket deep discounting which frequently sees beer sold at a lower retail price than any wholesaler can afford to charge. Any outlet pursuing this kind of pricing policy cannot be seen as "fit and proper" in licensing terms, as dirtcheap offers are a clear inducement to over-consumption.See the full content of this document
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Price Rises Will Not Curb Drink Problem
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