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Scottish court has surprisingly rules in favour of minimum alcohol pricing. Chances..

  • 21-10-2016 12:41pm
    #1
    hatrickpatrick
    Registered Users, Registered Users 2 Posts: 17,797 ✭✭✭✭


    ...our own court will still block it?

    http://www.irishtimes.com/news/health/minimum-alcohol-pricing-moves-closer-after-scottish-court-ruling-1.2838220
    The introduction of a minimum price for alcohol in Ireland has moved a step closer following a decision by a Scottish court backing the measure.

    The Court of Sessions in Edinburgh has ruled against a challenge by the Scotch whisky industry, which claimed minimum unit pricing breached European law.
    The decision paves the way for the Scottish parliament to implement the policy, which has been delayed by legal challenges since 2012.

    It also diminishes the legal threat to similar Irish legislation, which has been delayed but is due back in the Seanad next week.

    And
    The Scotch Whisky Association brought a challenge claiming the measure was a breach of trade law. It said other policies should be considered as an alternative to minimum pricing, including an increase in tax.
    However, the Scottish court found the advantage of the proposed system was that it was linked to the strength of alcohol.

    The alternative of increasing tax, with or without a ban on below cost sales, would be less effective than minimum pricing, it said.

    The issue of minimum pricing was referred to the European Court of Justice, which ruled last December that European law may have been breached.
    However, the court said it was ultimately up to national courts to make the decision about whether to implement it.

    Apparently it can still be challenged in the UK supreme court. How bollocksed are we now in terms of this? Last time I posted a thread here about this was before the ECJ ruling and everybody seemed pretty confident that the ECJ would block it. What seems to have happened is that the ECJ advised that it would be illegal, but left enough loopholes and wiggle room for the Scottish courts to allow it.

    Is there any possibility of our own courts rejecting it, or are we now down to the last possibility that the minority government won't be able to pass it politically? Are there significant differences between the Irish and British courts or legal system which would make it likely that our courts could rule differently?


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