One of the country’s top public health advisers is supporting plans to outlaw cheap booze in Greater Manchester.
John Middleton is vice-president of the UK Faculty of Public Health, which advises the NHS and supports policy development.
He says the region’s 10 council chiefs should be commended for moves to introduce a bylaw to ban the sale of alcohol for less than 50p a unit within Greater Manchester boundaries.
The prime minister says he is ‘very supportive’ of the plans, which are being explored by the Association of Greater Manchester Authorities. AGMA hopes that if the idea proves workable it will trigger a minimum price nationally.
Mr Middleton called Mr Cameron’s support ‘an enormous step forward’ in the country’s battle against alcohol harm.
He said: "The price of alcohol has become a major threat to us and we must commend Greater Manchester for taking this lead. Traders are
understandably fearful about people going to buy where it’s cheaper and that’s ultimately why it should be a national law, but Greater Manchester is a big place and a lot of people will have to go a long way.
"Sometimes people have to be brave and take that risk."
He said he believed minimum pricing was the most effective way of reducing consumption and the £400m annual NHS bill for alcohol-related illness in the north west. Mr Middleton urged other authorities to
follow suit, making booze the same price across neighbouring areas and therefore helping to combat any obstacles thrown up by competition laws.
He said: "We believe there’s strong evidence that we need to price alcohol more realistically to reduce harm but also to help people reclaim their cities, parts of which have become violent, no go areas at night.
"Ideally there should be national legislation but the more local authorities that go down this route to protect their population’s health and at least price alcohol at more than it costs to make, the better."
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No.
Cheap beer isn't the problem. People are.
Why punish the rest of us become some muppet can't control what they drink?
And if such a law passes; I assume McDonalds prices will be going through the roof???
Just how many times have these so called experts been wrong.I remember them saying all day drinking would cut drunkeness. How wrong.Instead of hitting the casual drinker put up the drinking age to around twent five.Putting up prices will have no effect.The kids just club together and buy a bottle of spirits between them before going out.
I think it's a cracking idea. I can't wait to pay 50p a unit, when a pint will cost a pound in the pubs.
Totally agree with Guy Incognito.
It seems funny that the rest of Europe can enjoy cheap alcohol and not encounter the same problems we do in this county.
Unfortunately another case of education for the masses that believe taking to excess is the norm.
Pity, cos "responsible" adults who are in the majority, suffer once again at the expense of the numptys!
It was thanks to these experts that every corner shop is now licenced to sell booze next to where children buy their sweets etc.And its those same experts that told us all if pubs and clubs had a 24 hour licence we would all drink sensibly,HOW WRONG THEY WERE. MCC and other councils who freely give out alcohol licences to every corner shop are the main culprits who promote the sale of booze and fags to the young.If children from a early age are buying sweets in the same atmosphere as alcoholics and people who are buying booze,the end results are what we have very young drinkers.
If this is implemented around greater manchester,people will just go to lancashire/west yorkshire/cheshire and merseyside for their drinks simples!
if this goes ahead i am planning on protestin gat manchester town hall. I will create a facebook group shortly and post details.
"He said he believed minimum pricing was the most effective way of reducing consumption"
As proven where exactly?
I cant believe this keeps coming up, its against your human right so they can never do it yet keep going on about it.
Look "introducing a bylaw to ban the sale of alcohol for less than 50p a unit within Greater Manchester boundaries" is still illegal contrary to EU price fixing law.
MEN - why do you keep giving publicity to this illegal scheme which is just a waste of taxpayers cash.
It cannot be any clearer ... http://lexisweb.co.uk/groups/company_commercial/blog/archive/2010/3/19/14343.aspx
You can only increase the price of alcohol across the board and across the country by a tax rise.
Still disgusting if this goes through, but I've looked into home made wine and found out I can make 30 bottles of perfectly drinkable red wine in 5 days (!!) from a kit. It works out at £1.11 a bottle. I could go ultra cheap and get it down to 58p a bottle with another brand, but when the minimum price for a bottle of wine will be £4.50, it's still ultra cheap.
I won't be contributing to the supermarkets or the night time economy anymore.
It won't be me who's losing out.
Quote:
"He said he believed minimum pricing was the most effective way of reducing consumption".
I believe that shoplifting is the cheapest way of increasing consumptiom.
Price fixing isn't alowed. It is against every anti cartel law passed in the UK and Europe so there is no way that this can become law. Didn't they try this in Scotland...
All the consultation will just be a waste of money. Congestion charge anyone?
I wonder how much Fred karno and his circus,opps sorry Pat Karney and his clowns have to do with this. Why does this Labour run council thinks it can tell people how to run their lives.
spot on PW! if this minimum pricing policy comes in it had better turn the tables around and we see prices in pubs drop!
if they dont this will certainly kill off more and more bars.
I wonder what salary "John Middleton is vice-president of the UK Faculty of Public Health" is on and whether he will find it a burden to pay the minimum price for alcohol on his wine and bottle of scotch.
Many people work in this City of ours for my guess - a fraction of what Mr Middleton is on. Their box of wine from Aldi or ehererver which they treasure at the end of the week will go up from £14 to over £20. I doubt Mr Middleton will feel such a rise in his alcohol bill.
There is a difference between minimum and maximum.
Are many pubs selling beer at a pound, or one pound twenty a pint?
Or glasses of wine for 1.50 (large size)?
If not they seem unlikely to be directly affected.
I'd rather have two juicy pears.
In a world where this could happen, pubs and bars would stand to benefit as the price difference between drinking out and at home narrows. It's the supermarkets and local off-licenses that would get hit.
But as many have pointed out it's all irrelevant anyway as price fixing is illegal under EU law (yes, they do make decent laws every now and then eh?). The supermarket lawyers would be over it like a rash. It's a national tax hike or nothing.
What about the tramps? Nobody thinks about how this will affect them!
Go into any city centre at the weekend and see the people rolling around on the floor, fighting & throwing up (and some of them attacking ambulance crew). Were they paying less than 50p per unit ? ... no !
Many people who drink to excess are in the 18-25 age bracket & still living at home, with a disposable income of anything up to £300 per week.
What would this proposal do to change their drinking habits ? ... precious little, I think.
This would just punish the responsible drinkers. They should really be tackling under 18's getting hold of alcohol from the local 'offy', downing a bottle of vodka in the park & then hassling local residents. I'm sure Helen Newlove would agree.
If any change in the law is required, I think it might be WHERE you are able to buy alcohol, rather than how much you pay.
Go into any city centre at the weekend and see the people rolling around on the floor, fighting & throwing up (and some of them attacking ambulance crew).
Thats good multitasking at least
Given that there have never been any price controls (possibly because it is against E.U. Legislation) I fail to see where the evidence comes from that suggests such controls would reduce alcohol abuse.
It is reminiscent of the Chief Medical Officer last year saying that 23,000 of us would be dead as a result of Swine Flu......... So far we are less than 1,000 ....... That is Health professionals for you!
The English have been binge drinking since time immemorial, even the Romans called them the 'Sons of the Malt'. It has been proven that in Northern regions there is a greater tendancy to binge drink because of the lack of light especially in the winter months.
Putting up the price of drink is just another attack on the poor, surely it would be better to limit the number of cartons per pack, after all 24 cans in one box is quite a lot. Or alternatively limit the number of units of alcohol which can be bought by the offending age groups (perhaps 25 or even 30)?
Putting up the price will not affect those who can already afford to get blind drunk on a Saturday night in town centre pubs, nor will it stop kids who want to buy it either.
It won't affect the rich and stupid comments like the commentator who said we should be paying £25 and upwards for a bottle of wine just goes to show how out of touch some people are. How will it be possible to differentiate between a bottle of wine which used to cost £4.00 and another at £5.00 when they both cost the same? And where will the extra profits from charging more go? I can guess it won't be used to subsidise more expensive bottles/
All in all a simplistic knee jerk reaction to a complex problem, but then that's what councils and politicians do best!
This country is obsessed with helping those who have no responsibility and the rest suffer. I'll give examples at the end, but as regards yobbish behaviour and alcohol most of these people are yobs to begin with, the alcohol just exacerbates it. Why should I pay more for a bottle of wine just because some incoherent puking yob can't handle himself/herself?
Anyway examples of governments (especially Labour) problems and soloutions:
Problem Solution
Not enough people passing GCSE's and A Levels Dumb down education for all
Yobs can't handle their booze Everybody pays higher prices
Don't want to upset benefit cheats (Labour) Workers pay more tax
I stated at a friends off Quay Street on Saturday night, went to get the paper in the morning and had to dodge puke outside one large bar. Lovely to see the pigeons feeding on the puke at 7am too.