Salvation Army welcomes minimum alcohol unit price rise

The Salvation Army has welcomed the Scottish Government's decision to raise the minimum unit price of alcohol from 50p to 65p.

Deputy First Minister Shona Robison announced the plan on Thursday February 8 in a statement to Holyrood. The price increase will be subject to parliamentary approval.

Lee Ball, The Salvation Army's director of addictions, said: "We welcome this increase but also the government’s recognition that this measure alone will not be enough to tackle high levels of alcohol death and addiction in Scotland. People need support to tackle the reasons they turned to alcohol in the first place and that requires investment in specialist support.

“The Salvation Army is at the heart of communities across Scotland, providing specialist drug and alcohol support through our community churches, homelessness centres and outreach programmes.

"Moreover, since 2017 we have been working with the University of Stirling to pioneer research on substance use and related interventions that can prevent problems and reduce harms for individuals, their families and communities.”