Chamber and committees

Scottish Government officials have discussed with the European Commission the Government's intended measures as regards minimum pricing, but no legal advice has been sought or was given.

A minimum price would only apply at the point of sale and would have no bearing on exported Scotch Whisky. The Scottish Government’s minimum pricing proposal treats all products fairly, and makes no distinction between imported or domestic products.

Since 2007 we have consulted on and published a bold package of measures to tackle alcohol misuse in Scotland through Changing Scotland’s Relationship with Alcohol: A Framework for Action. We have placed a whole population approach at the heart of our Alcohol Framework which includes a package of over 40 measures to reduce alcohol related harm by helping to prevent problems arising in the first place, and includes improving support and treatment for those who are already experiencing problems.

We have made a record investment in tackling alcohol misuse of over £155 million since 2008 the bulk of this funding – £134 million – has gone directly to NHS boards for use in line with local priorities identified by Alcohol and Drug Partnerships.

Given the link between consumption and harm, and evidence that affordability is one of the drivers of increased consumption, addressing price is an important element of any long-term strategy to tackle alcohol misuse. We continue to believe that a minimum price per unit of alcohol would be the most effective, efficient, targeted and proportionate way to make a real impact on consumption and harm across Scotland. That is why we introduced an Alcohol Minimum Pricing Bill on 31 October.

Scottish Government officials have held discussions regarding minimum pricing of alcohol with various relevant contacts within the European Commission and they are being kept informed of developments.

Scottish Government officials have held discussions regarding minimum pricing of alcohol with representatives from the Office of Fair Trading.

It is not the role of the European Commission to provide legal advice to Scottish Government. For that reason, no legal advice has been sought from them and none has been provided.

It is not the role of the Office of Fair Trading to provide legal advice to Scottish Government. As for that reason no legal advice has been sought from them and none has been provided.

I refer the member to the answer to question S4W-03798 on 15 November 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.

The Scottish Government has been active in promoting a person-centred approach to recovery amongst Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADPs), since they were formed in September 2009. We established the HEAT A11 target to ensure that by March 2013, 90% of clients will wait no longer than three weeks from referral received to appropriate drug or alcohol treatment that supports their recovery. The most recent data, published on 27 September 2011, shows considerable progress with 86% of alcohol clients and 81% of drug clients who started treatment between April and June 2011 had waited three weeks or less. Full details of progress by NHS board and ADP are available at:

http://www.drugmisuse.isdscotland.org/wtpilot/reports.htm.

The role which peer support and mutual aid can play in recovery have been highlighted in both the review of the drugs evidence base by the Scottish Government, published in 2010, and the Scottish Ministerial Advisory Committee on Alcohol Problems (SMACAP) report on Quality Alcohol Treatment and Support (QATS), published in March 2011.

In terms of measuring progress, recovery outcomes - and indicators which enable progress on these to be measured - were one of the four key themes of the Outcomes Toolkit for Alcohol and Drugs Partnerships, which was published in September 2009.

Building on this, Scottish Government is currently working with local Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADPs) and COSLA to strengthen ADP reporting arrangements. This work seeks to draw on existing good practice of ADP reporting to their Community Planning Partnerships (CPPs), and to provide a degree of consistency across the country by identifying a set of core outcomes and core indicators which all ADPs should report on. This will enable ADPs to measure and drive improvement – including by enabling them to benchmark against one another; to improve their reporting to their local CPP; as well as contributing to the national picture of delivery.

Seven core national drug and alcohol outcomes have been identified and formed part of the allocation letters for earmarked drug and alcohol funding for 2011-12. A full list of the core outcomes is available at:

http://www.scotland.gov.uk/Topics/Health/health/Alcohol/resources/ADPCoreOutcomes.

The emphasis on provision of personalised care support which facilitates an individual’s recovery is a key thread which runs throughout these core outcomes. One of the national core outcomes is Recovery, where “individuals are improving their health, wellbeing and life chances by recovering from problematic drug and alcohol use. A range of health, psychological, social and economical improvements in wellbeing should be experienced by individuals who are recovering from problematic drug and alcohol use, including reduced consumption, fewer
co-occurring health issues, improved family relationships and parenting skills, stable housing; participation in education and employment, and involvement in social and community activities.”

The Scottish Government is currently working with ADPs to develop a set of core indicators which will enable improvements in the core outcomes to be measured. The core outcomes and indicators will be supplemented by local outcomes and indicators which reflect local priorities. We intend to have the revised arrangements in place by spring 2012.

The Scottish Drug Misuse Database (SDMD) is a key national information source, which is based on the systematic recording of the demographic and behavioural characteristics of clients seen at a broad range of specialist drug treatment services in Scotland. The information recorded on clients as they progress through drug treatment includes the interventions being delivered by the service and information on the individual’s drug use. The SDMD also records broader details on elements which are important to an individual’s recovery from drug use, including their wider social circumstances (for example, housing, employment and education). It is anticipated that the first release of follow-up information from the SDMD will be published by NHS Information Services Division (ISD) Scotland in December 2012. Local partners, such as Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADPs) and treatment services, will be able to use this information to help them monitor, assess and manage their services on the basis of treatment and recovery outcomes.

National data on assessing the progress toward recovery outcomes of clients receiving treatment for alcohol use are currently not centrally held. In light of the Scottish Ministerial Advisory Committee on Alcohol Problems (SMACAP) Essential Services Working Group’s recommendation in their Quality Alcohol Treatment and Support (QATS) report (published March 2011), that a national outcomes-focused alcohol treatment database should be developed, we are currently scoping options for this.

The Scottish Government is also currently working with Alcohol and Drug Partnerships (ADPs) and COSLA (Convention of Scottish Local Authorities) to strengthen ADP reporting arrangements, as outlined in the answer to question S4W-03793 on 15 November 2011. All answers to written parliamentary questions are available on the parliament’s website, the search facility for which can be found at:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/parliamentarybusiness/28877.aspx.