Current status: Answered by Maree Todd on 19 October 2022
To ask the Scottish Government whether its evaluation of minimum unit pricing will take into account any changes to excise duty.
We are currently in the process of evaluating minimum unit pricing (MUP) as a whole over its first five years of operation. Public Health Scotland will be producing a final report on MUP in 2023, which will inform our evaluation report which will be laid in Parliament and published in 2023.
Work on reviewing the level of MUP has started as part of our overall evaluation, as the impact of MUP is connected to the unit price. We are evaluating the impact of MUP at the current price of 50 pence per unit and will assess what level MUP should be set at going forward, if MUP is to continue. It is important that we have a robust evidence base to support any decision on a change in the level of MUP.
Part of this work includes a Business and Regulatory Impact Assessment which will look at the likely costs, benefits and risk of any proposed legislation. This will include how any changes to MUP will interact with any potential changes to excise duty.