Scotland to raise minimum age for off-licence customers, and launch minimum price for booze

The minimum age for buying alcohol in supermarkets and off-licences is to be raised to 21 in Scotland as part of a wide-ranging attempt to clamp down on binge drinking.

The Scottish government is also proposing to introduce a minimum price for alcohol and ban buy-one-get-one free supermarket promotions to discourage drinking and cut irresponsible behaviour.

The minimum price, expected to be about 40p per unit of alcohol, would increase the cost of the strongest, most heavily discounted drinks, such as superstrength cider and lager, by up to 400%.

A Scottish government source said: “We simply cannot go on allowing shops to sell superstrength beer and lager for less than the price of water.”

The progress of the policy, which must be passed by the Holyrood parliament, will be watched closely in Westminster.

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