MINIMUM unit pricing for alcohol will come into force on May 1 2018, the Scottish Government has announced.
Health secretary Shona Robison today (November 21) updated MSPs on the plans – and confirmed a consultation on the preferred minimum unit price of 50 pence will be published next week.
Robison said the Scottish Government “want to introduce minimum unit pricing as quickly as possible”.
“I now anticipate setting the minimum unit price at 50 pence per unit,” she said.
“We now want to hear from retailers, representative bodies and Licensing Standards Officers about the practicalities of implementation.”
Robison’s announcement follows the UK Supreme Court’s recent ruling in favour of the Scottish Government’s Alcohol (Minimum Pricing) (Scotland) Act 2012, which has paved the way for the introduction of a minimum unit price (MUP) for alcohol policy in Scotland – five years after the act was passed by the Scottish Parliament.
