Rocky road for bill

THE minimum pricing policy is the first major bill to be introduced to the Scottish Parliament by the SNP since its landslide election victory in May this year.

Labour, Tory and Lib Dem politicians ganged up in the last session of parliament to block the policy, when the then minority SNP government tried to introduce the move.

Justice secretary Kenny MacAskill had originally pushed ahead with the policy in 2008, when he backed a package of anti binge-drinking measures. The policy later became the responsibility of Nicola Sturgeon.

However, the minimum pricing legislation failed to attract cross-party support.

The bill was rejected despite Ms Sturgeon’s offer of a sunset clause that would have meant minimum pricing would only stay on the statute book if the policy proved to be effective in health terms.