Minimum alcohol pricing is nigh

elperello

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118556505#Comment_118556505

Just about sums it up.

Even though I was on here for years complaining about MUP and clearly saw it coming I find myself getting more annoyed now that it's here, not less.

The passage of time is just underscoring the wrongness of it all.

Full disclosure : I stocked up so MUP won't affect casa elperello until some time in January 2023.

So it's not that my pocket has been affected yet, it's more a feeling of being let down as a law abiding, tax paying citizen by a bunch of useless politicians on all sides of the house.

VinLieger

Lets be honest the people who refuse to accept that this is an attack on poor people don't actually care because they come from a supreme place of arrogance and honestly believe they just saving the little ignorant poor people from themselves by stopping them drinking alcohol.

Basically the ends justify the means.

gmisk

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118555569#Comment_118555569

Only a matter of time probably on sweets.

They already did it for sugar in drinks.

https://www.revenue.ie/en/companies-and-charities/excise-and-licences/sugar-sweetened-drinks-tax/rate-of-tax.aspx

VinLieger

AII accidentally admitting that alcohol producers probably did =artificially inflating their prices to keep their brands value proposition higher with MUP

https://twitter.com/AlcoholIreland/status/1487076698826936321

Suckit

There were (at least) three people with a questionnaire today around Jervis shopping centre at around 3pm asking about MUP. I didn't have time to do it, but I did ask and answer a couple of questions. The guy told me that majority of people didn't know it wasn't a tax or that it was backed by the off licence association and the pubs. I wanted to ask a few more questions but couldn't. One question would have been if he was from boards 😁 (I only noticed afterwards that there were others). Could have been from some press group.

Irish Times has an article in it today, with some information about buying online.

https://www.irishtimes.com/business/personal-finance/drink-link-can-you-buy-cheap-wine-from-abroad-online-1.4789181?localLinksEnabled=false

A couple of trips to France could be well worth it.

Especially if having any sort of large gathering with guests.

VinLieger

AAI were on newstalk this morning saying how we shouldnt increase licensing hours and actually should decrease them even further, they are some shower of fun sponges. Also they outright lied about the effects of increasing opening hours.

elperello

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118569033#Comment_118569033

Maybe the publicans will now start to realise that these guys are not their friends.

About time the publicans realised that the people keeping them in business are those of us who like a drink not the neo prohibitionists.

They should never have lobbied against our interests over MUP.

Luxembourgo

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118569033#Comment_118569033

Why are an almost fully government funded body lobbying the government?

Disband AAI (and a host of useless other NGOs while we are at it)

Suckit

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118572371#Comment_118572371

Almost?

I thought they were entirely. But fully agree. They have tried (and succeeded) to dictate what they decide we should or shouldn't have for too long, it's not hard to sit doing that and taking a wage when there is no pushback.

See how far they would get if they decided to no longer focus on just alcohol, and started to take aim at all of the other products that are 'bad for us'. Maybe a long term plan.

La Madame

This is the response I got from Minister Donnellys Office: 'Minister Donnelly wishes to thank you for your correspondence regarding the introduction of the minimum unit pricing provision of the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018 and to advise you that he has noted your comments in this regard.'🍺

I am considering (besides other options) Home Brewing now. I remember the Kits which were on sale in the eighties, kind of tins which brew terrible tasteless watery stuff but it seems the world of home brewing has since moved on and there is some really professional equipment on sale out there.

https://shop.grainfather.com/eu/g30-brewing-system.html

elperello

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118576075#Comment_118576075

That's about as close a civil servant can get to telling you to kindly **** off ! 🙂

Good luck with the homebrew.

La Madame

There is an article in buzz.ie interviewing a professor from a place called Victoria somewhere in Canada . He is very supportive of MUP and the link is here:

https://www.buzz.ie/lifestyle/health/minimum-unit-pricing-benefits-health-26122639

One other solution he found was this QUOTE: Or they use cannabis, which of course is legal here, and much, much safer than alcohol. Canada is actually running programmes trying to move drinkers on to cannabis instead. Here is my link to it

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Il9q397lL0

KrustyUCC

Northern Ireland assembly collapsed

Last time that happened it took 3 years to put back together

That's the reason the government was meant to bring in MUP at the same time as the North

Now we have years of higher prices compared to there to look forward to

MUP will be well down the political agenda up there

What a mess our government have made costing the exchequer for years to come

end of the road

everyone needs to make the pub subsidy an election issue.

i know all political parties support it but if they see that there is more or less no public support for it when they go door to door at election time one of them might wake up.

and don't refer to it as MUP when discussing it with election candidates but hammer it home that it is an indirect pub subsidy.

Suckit

This seems apt.

https://streamable.com/vrcatw

La Madame

https://www.heraldscotland.com/politics/19897440.donald-macleod-minimum-unit-pricing-glass-half-empty/

dxhound2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118585633#Comment_118585633

Another newpaper columnist who wants to lecture us. He deliberately chose to ignore, or does not know that there is a "sunset" clause in the Scottish legislation. There is also a review clause in the Irish legislation. The anti MUP party should be in power when that comes round.

http://www.healthscotland.scot/health-topics/alcohol/evaluation-of-minimum-unit-pricing-mup/overview-of-evaluation-of-mup/why-we-are-evaluating-mup#:~:text=MUP%20for%20all%20alcoholic%20drinks,votes%20for%20it%20to%20continue.

Why MUP needs evaluated

MUP for all alcoholic drinks has not been put in place anywhere before so the legislation contains a sunset clause. This means that it will expire by 31 April 2024 unless the Scottish Parliament votes for it to continue.

To inform this decision there is a review clause. This requires Scottish Ministers to present a report to the Scottish Parliament on the impact of MUP after 1 May 2023 and before 31 April 2024. The evaluation we are undertaking will inform this report.

La Madame

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118585967#Comment_118585967

Completely beside the point, as if you hadn't read the article! The main points in this article here for you as follows: however, having been a very vocal supporter of this flagship policy four years ago, I’m now not entirely convinced a rise would help. Not if the most recent research by Manchester Metropolitan University, published last October, is anything to go by.

This comprehensive study, which analysed Police Scotland data to understand how minimum pricing affected various crimes, found that its introduction had a minimal impact on drink-related crime and that there were no statistical changes in public disorder and nuisance offences.

These findings backed a previous study by Jon Bannister, a professor in criminology, who found that off-trade alcohol sales in Scotland dropped by 8%, but that drop had no discernible impact on alcohol-related crime levels.

Hardly a ringing endorsement of minimum pricing, especially when you consider the sobering fact that alcohol-related deaths in Scotland are at their highest level since 2008, a rise of 17%, especially in our most deprived areas, where people are seven times more likely to be admitted to hospital than those from more affluent areas.

Fr Tod Umptious

This guy can be the leader of the anti MUP party.

Quazzie

So a month since the introduction of MUP has anyone here actually protested or even gone up north, or as usual is it all just shitetalk?

techman1

These unelected NGOs seem to be deciding everything now and the politicians just rubber stamp everything they want . It's time a concerted campaign was started to get these NGOs away from government and to stop public funding of these organisations. They are having a corrosive effect on the proper running and the democratic accountability of government.

It's laughable that with the government now being very worried about rampant inflation when they are the biggest causes what with MUP and carbon taxes

sundodger5

Protest no. Up North yes.

La Madame

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118589857#Comment_118589857

I wrote to Donnelly and to my local Fianna Fail TD . I also wrote to my local FG TD about a year ago but he was a real snob.There are several different petitions on the Internet looking for signatures. (In so far no good because the action should be synergised) Alcohol Action Ireland has a Facebook page which is open for comments...

dxhound2005

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118589936#Comment_118589936

Debated for years, enacted in 2018, put into effect 2022. Is that what you mean by rubber stamped?

https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/question/2012-12-20/308/

https://www.oireachtas.ie/en/debates/question/2014-02-25/703/

KrustyUCC

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118589857#Comment_118589857

Protested yes I've contacted every TD in my constituency along with the leaders of the various parties

Mostly crap filler responses but I'll be bringing it on the doorstep next election

Cost of living coming more sharply into focus will keep this issue in public thought

Have I gone up North? Not personally but my aunt brought us down vodka and whiskey after visiting her son

Just waiting for next 25% of 6 bottles of wine sale at Easter

She will get the remainder of the wine for my wedding up North

I'll save a couple of hundred euro that can be used elsewhere

I'm going to email the receipts to all my TDs and party leaders just to show the savings

Neamhshuntasach

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118589857#Comment_118589857

Haven't protested. But haven't spent a cent in the state on alcohol since outside of a pub setting. And i'm not shouting from the roof tops about it either. Most people will just get on with it and you won't know what they are doing.

I'm up close to the north a few times each month. And i've bought drink up there 3 times since. Once for myself to stock up and 2 times for family and friends who asked after i told them about it. Was also out at a party in a friends house on Saturday night. Surprised at the amount who had drink from up north. A few didn't make the trip themselves. But got it online or through someone they knew who is offering a service. This is what will happen. Habits will change and less money will be spent in the state and will look like less alcohol is being consumed. But it won't be. It will be just sourced elsewhere. All at a cost to the tax take.

ablelocks

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118589857#Comment_118589857

haven't protested

haven't had to go North yet as i've stockpiled since before Christmas

Once that needs to be replenished, I'll take a trip alright

easygoing39

I've been to Newry 3 times so far for beer.Have 36 cans left,and when I drink them I'll be up to Newry again for more.

HBC08

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/comment/118589857#Comment_118589857

I'm not often in the North,once every couple of years for football matches.Ive never been in an off licence in the North until yesterday when I was up for the football.Cleared the boot out before I left home and filled it and the back seats.

I'll be doing the same when I head up there the next time.

This will look great for AAI and prove that mup is working because alcohol sales are down.It in no way reflects the reality.

Leroy42

Yes, but retailers won't be happy, and they'll be knocking on the governments door to ask why NI is getting all the taxes and money and no actual real impact in A&E etc.

Individual consumers can't really achieve much, but massive action will lead to action from retailers.