Wales to implement MUP for alcohol in 2019

Wales has passed a law to implement minimum unit pricing (MUP) for alcohol, which will come into effect next summer.

The MUP addresses health concerns around the effects of excess alcohol consumption

The Public Health Minimum Price for Alcohol Bill was introduced before the National Assembly for Wales on 23 October by public health minister Rebecca Evans.

The bill was approved by assembly members yesterday (19 June), and will become law once it has received royal ascent.

It addresses health concerns around the effects of excess alcohol consumption, which is estimated to lead to 55,000 alcohol-related hospital admissions a year, costing the Welsh NHS £150m annually. In 2016, there were 504 alcohol-related deaths in Wales.

The level of MUP for this purpose will be specified in regulations made by the Welsh ministers following a consultation this year.

“This legislation provides us with an opportunity for a step change,” said health secretary, Vaughan Gething.

“It gives us a chance to do more to address alcohol-related harms. And ultimately, it gives us a chance to do more to try to save lives. This legislation takes a sensible, targeted approach to a very real and evident problem in Wales today.

“But it will be supported by a range of additional actions being taken forward to support those in need – forming part of the Welsh Government’s wider Substance Misuse Strategy.

“Wales, like so many other western countries, has a problem with cheap, strong, readily-available alcohol. This legislation will make an important contribution to addressing this issue.”

The law is currently expected to come into force during the summer of 2019.

The MUP for Wales bill follows a similar move by the Scottish Government. A minimum price of 50 pence per unit of alcohol in Scotland came into effect on 1 May 2018. 

There have also been fresh calls for England to follow suit in order to “significantly reduce” alcohol-related deaths.