The Scottish government has launched radical plans to tackle alcohol abuse, including setting a minimum price per unit to stop drinks being sold for 'pocket money prices'.
The government said it was acting to tackle the country's alcohol misuse epidemic, which costs £2.25bn a year in health costs and days off work.
Announcing the plans, Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon and Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill said discount deals on strong drinks would also be banned in shops and supermarkets and advertising restricted.
'The scale of Scotland's alcohol misuse problem is shocking,' Ms Sturgeon said in a statement, citing 42,500 alcohol-related hospital discharges; 1,500 deaths per year; soaring rates of liver cirrhosis; and the eighth highest consumption in the world.'
However, the minority government shied away from a controversial move to raise the minimum off-sales age to 21 nationwide.
