Minimum pricing 'a restriction on civil liberties'

By Adam Pescod

- Last updated on GMT

Related tags Minimum pricing Drinking culture

Not the solution: MPs rule out minimum pricing
Not the solution: MPs rule out minimum pricing
Conservative MP Louise Bagshawe told BBC's Question Time last night that minimum pricing on alcohol would be a restriction on civil liberties.

Minimum pricing on alcohol "is a restriction on civil liberties", according to Conservative MP Louise Bagshawe.

Speaking on BBC's Question Time last night, Ms Bagshawe also floated the possibility of raising the minimum drinking age to 21 as a solution to the problem of binge drinking in the UK.

"If you are determined to go out and be a binge drinker, a little bit of extra money isn't going to deter you from that aim," said Bagshawe.

She added: "Unless we have a serious cultural shift we are never going to solve this problem in England.

"I have on occasion wondered if we should take a leaf out of the Americans' book and consider raising the drinking age. It is 21 over there and people start to drink a lot later and more responsibly.

'Perhaps that is going too far but I definitely think we need a cultural shift."

Other members of the Question Time panel, including Labour MP and Shadow Leader of the Commons, Hilary Benn, agreed that minimum pricing may not be the answer.

"I think it is social change that is needed if we are going to deal with this problem," said Benn.

He continued: "If you look at some other countries in the world where their licensing hours are the same as our's, there isn't quite the same problems of binge drinking that we see in our towns and cities.

"It is cultural and we have a responsibility to deal with it, but whether minimum pricing will help or not, to be honest I am not sure, because there are those who would say 'I'm not causing these problems so why have you hit me?'"

Former Chairman of the Press Complaints Commission, Christopher Meyer said: "I agree it is a cultural problem but the culture is not going to shift any time soon.

"We can never raise tax sufficiently to act as a real deterrent.

"We should take the rowdy public order aspect of drinking and treat it like it is - a public order offence."

Related topics Legislation

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