So - a survey of 10,000 Asda shoppers in SCOTLAND (I emphasize the word Scotland) has revealed a huge majority in favour of booze promotions. Knock me down with a feather. Land of whisky, Tennent's Extra and spiritual home of Buckie, surely there was only ever one eligible choice on the ballot paper? Cor blimey, they'll be voting for full independence next! (And I say this as a fully paid-up resident and 'Yes-Yes' voter.)
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Of course, it's a moot point whether a ban on alcohol promotions will terminate excess consumption, because the commercial reality is that available supplier discounts and 'prohibited' extra-fill will simply be fed into the ongoing price (with a little bit going to pukka branded promotional activity, and maybe a hefty chunk into the retailer's margin. Ker-ching.). In any event, High Street booze is now so cheap that it would take the mother of all price hikes to lift it past its on-trade levels, and I don't notice any shortage of inebriated barflies pouring nightly out onto the streets.
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Luckily for the community, decisions on alcohol promotion and availability are made by politicians and not Asda shoppers, so there's a chance that something might be done to reverse the nation's decline into chronic cirrhosis and street-corner strife, as has been achieved in regard to the latter by the recent under-21 pilot alcohol bans in test districts (although apparently not to be rolled out, despite their immense success).
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However, I detect crocodile tears from Asda when it comes to defending the poor, hard-up shopper, alluding to the credit crunch and tough economic times. Surely everyone knows the best way to save money on alcohol? Don't buy it.
