SCOTS are still drinking more per head than our counterparts south of the Border, but the gap is closing.
Last year the difference was the narrowest it has been since 2002 as sales declined in Scotland but rose in England and Wales.
Exactly how much of that can be pinned on minimum pricing remains to be seen - further data providing a breakdown of sales by alcohol type are not yet available, but will be soon.
For the policy to be working as planned the biggest drops in demand should be seen among the previously cheap, 'high-strength' products such as cider which experienced the biggest hikes in price.
Read more: Alcohol sales in Scotland in 2018 'lowest since records began'
Although Buckfast - with its 15% alcohol strength and the equivalent caffeine content of eight cans of Coca Cola in a 75cl bottle - has garnered a notorious reputation in the west of Scotland, it was already comparatively expensive and therefore unaffected by minimum-unit pricing (MUP).
One of the nagging questions over the past year is whether problem drinkers would swap intoxication from a three-litre bottle of Frosty Jack's for Buckfast instead.
Read more: Warning over 'exponential rise' in waiting times as doctors quit amid pensions crisis
It will also be interesting to examine what types of alcohol in particular are behind Scotland's declining sales.
The MESAS report only tells us that the vast majority (73%) of alcohol sales occurred in the off-trade sector - that is, in supermarkets and other off-licences, rather than in bars, clubs and restaurants where higher retail prices overshadow any effect from MUP.
Of the off-trade sales in Scotland, beer accounted for 31%, spirits for 29%, wine for 29% and cider for 7%. The remaining 4% covers beverages such as liqueurs.
It is also worth noting that whatever the effect of MUP, alcohol is still far cheaper now than it was 30 years ago despite repeated increases in duty.
The MESAS report notes: "In 2018, alcohol sold in the UK was 64% more affordable than it was in 1987."
Read more: Teen drinkers in Scotland at an all-time low
Supermarket sales and the competition which accompanied it explains much of that.
Even with MUP, the average price of alcohol sold in the off-trade sector in Scotland was still only 59 pence per unit - an increase from 55ppu in 2017, and only slightly above the average of 56ppu in England and Wales.
However, the figures on alcohol-related deaths and hospital admissions underline the need for action.
Today's fall in sales hopefully means a fall in premature deaths in future - but those effects are far off.
Why are you making commenting on The Herald only available to subscribers?
It should have been a safe space for informed debate, somewhere for readers to discuss issues around the biggest stories of the day, but all too often the below the line comments on most websites have become bogged down by off-topic discussions and abuse.
heraldscotland.com is tackling this problem by allowing only subscribers to comment.
We are doing this to improve the experience for our loyal readers and we believe it will reduce the ability of trolls and troublemakers, who occasionally find their way onto our site, to abuse our journalists and readers. We also hope it will help the comments section fulfil its promise as a part of Scotland's conversation with itself.
We are lucky at The Herald. We are read by an informed, educated readership who can add their knowledge and insights to our stories.
That is invaluable.
We are making the subscriber-only change to support our valued readers, who tell us they don't want the site cluttered up with irrelevant comments, untruths and abuse.
In the past, the journalist’s job was to collect and distribute information to the audience. Technology means that readers can shape a discussion. We look forward to hearing from you on heraldscotland.com
Comments & Moderation
Readers’ comments: You are personally liable for the content of any comments you upload to this website, so please act responsibly. We do not pre-moderate or monitor readers’ comments appearing on our websites, but we do post-moderate in response to complaints we receive or otherwise when a potential problem comes to our attention. You can make a complaint by using the ‘report this post’ link . We may then apply our discretion under the user terms to amend or delete comments.
Post moderation is undertaken full-time 9am-6pm on weekdays, and on a part-time basis outwith those hours.
Read the rules hereLast Updated:
Report this comment Cancel