Since the Queen's speech failed to confirm whether Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) truly has been ditched, the jostling, debate and politics surrounding the issue goes on.
In particular, the question over industry influence over alcohol policy has been under the media spotlight. Conservative MP Sarah Wollaston, who has been a outspoken supporter of MUP, accused Cameron of caving in to lobbyists last month. Similar concerns held by many minimum pricing supporters were summarised in an article by the Institute of Alcohol Studies' Katherine Brown in 'The red-faced ranters have won'.
The issue also gained attention following a recent study on Industry Use of Evidence to Influence Alcohol Policy. The research suggested that industry submissions to the Scottish Government's 2008 consultation included deliberately mis-representative and unsubstantiated claims - replicating past 'big tobacco' industry tactics. See here for a Guardian analysis of the research and a critical take of it on Phil Mellows' blog. > > > > Read More
