Right now the booze we buy is pretty safe - we are pretty confident of its origins. But if minimum pricing comes in and we continue to see accelerated rises in duty, something will change:
Seizures of contraband alcohol smuggled from France have surged to around three times their normal levels this summer, say officials.
French customs officers in the Channel ports of Calais and Boulogne-sur-Mer confiscated 82,000 litres of illegal spirits in the past month.
This is the amount normally seized over a three-month summer period.
And this contraband booze isn't sold in Sainsbury, nor is it sold through the cash-and-carry. It's sold out of the back of a van or in a fifth floor council flat. Do you think the blokes selling the booze care about selling it to 12 year old kids? Or give a monkey's about whether it's the real brand or some dodgy moonshine?
As I said - minimum pricing for alcohol is a really stupid idea.
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