SHAAP comments on the Public Health Scotland report on Minimum Unit Price for alcohol impact on deaths, published in the Lancet
Dr Alastair MacGilchrist, chair of expert clinician partnership, Scottish Health Action on Alcohol Problems (SHAAP), said:
“Minimum unit pricing (MUP) was introduced to save lives, and this latest report shows it is doing just that. For every life saved, there’s a family, friends and community not being forced into grief due to a death from alcohol.
“MUP is a progressive policy and one of a range that the Scottish Government has at its disposal to ensure future generations do not suffer the same harms that we are dealing with.
“This new evidence demonstrates that taking action to reduce harms from alcohol in the face of fierce opposition from the alcohol industry is worth doing. In recent weeks there have been far-fetched claims about the Scottish Government’s potential future restrictions on alcohol marketing, which is exactly what happened when the idea of minimum unit pricing was first mooted.
“However, there is no evidence of a negative impact on businesses, and instead retailers adapted quickly and effectively. Not only that, Scotland’s alcohol industry is thriving whilst MUP is narrowing health inequalities resulting from alcohol harms.
“This report should serve as an important reminder to whoever becomes Scotland’s next First Minister: taking forward evidence-based measures to reduce the number of people suffering due to alcohol is the right thing to do.”
