This website uses cookies so that we can provide you with the best user experience possible. Cookie information is stored in your browser and performs functions such as recognising you when you return to our website and helping our team to understand which sections of the website you find most interesting and useful.
News
Is 99p wine coming to the UK?
Wine as cheap as 99p a bottle could be seen on UK shelves soon as discount chain 99p Stores applies for an alcohol licence.
If the alcohol licence is approved, the retailer could be selling everything from bottles of wine to alcopops for the knockdown price later this year.
This morning’s newspaper Metro, reported that Hussein Lalani, commercial director of 99p Stores, has said: “We are a responsible retailer and we have a very good track record on dealing with underage sales.”
However, Ian Gilmore, president of the Royal College of Physicians told the newspaper it was irresponsible to sell booze at a time when health damage and disorder from alcohol was rising.
The revelation comes only days after health watchdog NICE approved the minimum pricing proposals.
Jane Parkinson, 21.06.2010
I am a great believer in the freedom of the individual to make their own choices in life, however this does seem to be a case of this particular retailer flying in the face of everything including, I suspect, the rest of their colleagues in retailerdom who are at least paying lip service to principles of being sensible with pricing. This will be the straw which breaks the camel’s back, I fear, and the trigger to introduce minimum pricing. I think we can all do without this sort of irresponsibility, perhaps the licensing authorities will view this in the same way?