The Scottish Parliament has finally rejected plans to introduce minimum pricing for alcohol in Scotland despite the backing of the ruling Scottish National Party (SNP).

The move was rejected by 76 votes to 49 during the third and final reading of the Alcohol Bill introduced by the SNP, after opposition parties united to defeat the idea.

The defeat of minimum pricing was welcomed by the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA), whose chief executive Gavin Hewitt said that the Scottish Parliament was ‘to be congratulated’.

He added: ‘Now that minimum pricing has been rejected, we call on all parties to come together to build consensus around alternative, more effective, legal, tax-based measures to address alcohol misuse.’

Written by Richard Woodard

Richard Woodard
Richard Woodard
Decanter Magazine, Wine & Spirits Writer

Richard Woodard is a freelance wine and spirits writer based in the UK. Aside from Decanter, he writes for several wine trade and media outlets including Imbibe, The Drinks Business, Harpers and Drinks International.

Since 2015 he has been the magazine editor of Scotchwhisky.com. He has formerly worked as a wine news reporter at Imbibe and a feature writer for Halycon Magazine.