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Scottish concerns
Nov. 16th, 2017 08:08 amIn listening to Radio Scotland on the way into work this morning I was amused by the set of news topics. First, in discussing Scotland's new minimum pricing for alcohol we heard about the prospect of cross-border alcohol smuggling. I wondered if the Scottish nationalists could append to their list of reasons for independence the prospect of buying duty-free alcohol at the border with England.
Then, we heard about the price of pie and cups of tea at Scottish soccer clubs. I had no idea that pie is a typical thing to buy at matches but after reflecting on local culture I guess it makes sense. The other story was about the unfairness of a brewery charging much more for delivery of their beer to the Scottish Highlands given the distance from their distribution center in England.
Broadly, a fair bit of this morning's local news related to the cost of beer and pie. Though, I concede that the brewery has premises even north of me and there was also discussion of soccer ticket prices in general.
I have mixed feelings on the minimum pricing issue. While it is obviously good to save lives and I laud a tax that in targeting alcohol volume fairly directly attaches to the underlying concern, to use a minimum pricing approach feels somewhat regressive in that it will affect the behavior of only the poorer in society.
Then, we heard about the price of pie and cups of tea at Scottish soccer clubs. I had no idea that pie is a typical thing to buy at matches but after reflecting on local culture I guess it makes sense. The other story was about the unfairness of a brewery charging much more for delivery of their beer to the Scottish Highlands given the distance from their distribution center in England.
Broadly, a fair bit of this morning's local news related to the cost of beer and pie. Though, I concede that the brewery has premises even north of me and there was also discussion of soccer ticket prices in general.
I have mixed feelings on the minimum pricing issue. While it is obviously good to save lives and I laud a tax that in targeting alcohol volume fairly directly attaches to the underlying concern, to use a minimum pricing approach feels somewhat regressive in that it will affect the behavior of only the poorer in society.
