Scotland's strategy is saving lives

2018 policy increased prices, led to a 15% reduction in alcohol-related deaths in just three years

- KATHARINE LAKE BERZ

In 2018 Scotland became the first country to introduce minimum unit pricing for drinks.

One frosty winter morning, Tom Bennett awoke on the cold ground with a bare foot frozen in the snow.

The night before, the 33-year-old man had been too drunk to tie his shoelaces and one of his boots had fallen off. He was homeless and he knew that alcohol was killing him. But he was too sick to care.

“It was just a horrible place to be,” said Bennett from his family home near Glasgow.

“I lost multiple jobs, multiple relationships. I lost all my dignity, selfrespect and self-esteem. I nearly died on many occasions.”

Today, Bennett, 47, is working to help others emerge from the same kind of darkness at a charity that helps those in the throes of addiction to heal. His journey reflects both alcoholism’s toll and Scotland’s transformative efforts to curb tragedy.

As Ontario moves to make alcohol more affordable and accessible, Scotland’s policies are advancing in the opposite direction.

Ontario officials say they are fulfilling a 2018 election promise to increase “choice and convenience for shoppers and support Ontario retailers, domestic producers and workers in the alcohol industry.”

But Scotland has cut alcohol-related hospital admissions by 40 per cent and deaths by almost half. While in Ontario, alcohol-related admissions have risen by a third and deaths by almost half, according to the Canadian Centre on Substance Use and Addiction.

While Scots officials say that hardhitting measures are necessary to lessen tragic outcomes, experts fear Ontario’s approach makes tragic outcomes inevitable.

As in many countries, alcohol is central in Canada’s social and economic life. Over three quarters of Canadians aged 15 and older report drinking alcohol, according to Statistics Canada. And booze sales contribute $26 billion annually to the national economy.