The introduction of minimum pricing has been credited with the drop in alcohol sales in Scotland last year - with lobby groups here calling for Ireland to follow suit. Sheila Gilheany, CEO of Alcohol Action Ireland, said the report gives the first indications of the impact of Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP). “Ireland which has even higher levels of alcohol consumption, needs to address the multiple harms from alcohol in a systematic way," Ms Gilheany said. Scottish health officials welcomed the figures and cited MUP as a significant contributor to the drop in alcohol sales. "Minimum unit pricing is a long-term strategy and to see results like this in the first year is extremely encouraging," he said.

Source: Irish Examiner June 19, 2019 14:14 UTC