Britain's alcohol market: how minimum alcohol prices could stop moderate drinkers subsidising those drinking at hazardous and harmful levels.

Discounting of alcoholic products is universal in U.K. supermarkets with some chains selling own brand spirits for less than the duty payable per item. Eighty per cent of alcohol purchases are made by 30% of the population and this group are the main beneficiaries. In December 2008 the government announced its intention to consult on modifications to the Licensing Act 2003 to enable the introduction of mandatory conditions for the sale of alcoholic products in order to curtail alcohol harm. In this article it is shown that families in Britain have nothing to fear from the introduction of a 50 p/unit minimum price of alcohol as the overall effect should be a reduction in average weekly supermarket bills for the majority while harmful and hazardous drinkers will pay more. By paying less for non-alcoholic products sold by supermarkets, moderate drinkers should no longer be effectively subsidising the alcohol purchased by the harmful and hazardous group.