The Scottish Government’s policy of mandating a minimum unit price (MUP) of alcohol went through a peculiar political journey before it was ultimately proved, like so many SNP policies, to have caused more harm than good.

The fact is that when it was first mooted, back in 2011, it was welcomed by a range of policy-makers and health professionals as a thoughtful and radical answer to Scotland’s perennial problem of alcohol-related deaths.

Drink has always been Scotland’s bane, the cause of much sorrow and violence, particularly in the nation’s poorer areas. The death toll from alcohol-related illnesses is 50% higher than in England – 21 deaths per 100,000 to 14 in England – while the worst affected areas are predominantly working class areas like Glasgow and Inverclyde

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