Minimum alcohol pricing is nigh

Political Mrs Lovejoys AAI doing the dirty work for pub trade. Useful idiots.

I believe that relatively speaking "on license" alcohol is not that expensive in Ireland.

There is a thread in Current Affairs/IMO about the price of a pint and plenty of people pointing out how it's more expensive in parts of the UK , USA etc.

Not a tax perhaps but it is "price fixing" where I cannot purchase an item at market value. And manufacturers-retailers make an extra profit because of this price fixing. Not an extra penny going to prevent alcohol abuse from the government.

Buying a beer in the US or Canada is generally much more expensive than Ireland, if you go anywhere half decent.

Compared to Spain or other part of continental Europe.. different story

Ah look I think you are splitting hairs. Obviously if the minimum price of something goes from whatever the retailer wants to charge (Let's say €10 for 20 330ml heinekens) to €22. Then the value added tax will increase.

Are consumption and sales lower? I haven't really seen much solid evidence of that. I could be wrong though. Where are people going for their alcohol instead and why is alcohol harm up then?

it's here to stay and the fear now is the AAI and the publicans look for an increase. I was in the pub the other day and was paying €6.80 for a pint of lager. I won't be going back out in a hurry. Plan is to put something in the back garden a covered TV.

Yes.

Take the supermarket own brand beer, especially the imported products.

Did the DE or FR brewer get a higher price due to MUP? I doubt it?

Therefore, the supermarkets captured all that extra price as extra profits.

And they've increased most of their own brand stuff to above MUP to screw us even more.

It absolutely is a tax, who the proceeds go to is irrelevant, government or private firm.

Is the min wage a tax? No.

Well, similarly, MUP is not a tax.

What should we call it then, a cut for rent seekers?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rent-seeking

I accept your point that MUP leads to higher VAT receipts, assuming no change in consumer behaviour.

But MUP itself is not a tax.

Yes, retail profits will have increased.

I'm no fan of MUP or higher excise, but at least with the excise duty, the extra State revenues could be earmarked for harm prevention or reduction, as you say.

I accept your point that MUP leads to higher VAT receipts, assuming no change in consumer behaviour.

But isn't this the whole idea behind MUP.

Consumer behavior will change because of the price increase, and there will be no "windfall" as one poster called it because the sales volumes will be reduced.

I'm not much of an off license buyer myself, maybe a six pack or a 1L bottle of cider once or twice a month.

But since MUP even that has reduced.

I find the selection in places like Aldi and Lidl way down and what is there is poor value because of MUP.

Whatever about the levels of addiction treatment etc it would be interesting to know what off license sales have been like since MUP, especially for retailers where the border doesn't come into the equation.

This the problem. Self interest groups like AAI and VFI try to pass decreased sales as a good thing without acknowledging the fact the it hasn't resolved problem drinking or health related issues caused by problem drinking.

That's the elephant in the room.

Watch the Maude Flanders brigade now, clutching their pearls, claiming that MUP needs to be increased further to combat this increase.

Of course, had it decreased over that same time period, the claims would be that it is working, so it needs to be increased.

Heads they win, tails we lose.

Alcohol consumption has been dropping over the last 10-15 years before MUP. Beer is the most widely purchased off license product. Medium to high end wines and spirits are not affected by MUP. Studies on Scotland's MUP experiment has shown at best, minimal to questionable benefits to those it is intended to benefit.