Minimum alcohol pricing is nigh

I think there is a bigger trend of people just giving up or really cutting down on drink as even after a couple they’re tired the next day and just can’t do it anymore. Never mind the cost of it. The youth aren’t drinking like most of us did 20-30 years ago. Generation change

They are drinking, possibly even more then the last - just in different ways.

A nephew of mine - would be 18, goes out just once a month to a nightclub usually. Gets absolutely hammered p*ss faced drunk on the mixers (vodka and coke/redbull etc) and stays out till all hours. All his friends are the same.

A few weekly pints at the local just isn't a thing - most of them don't even like beer other then the odd bottle of corona/heinegen in the house only if its the only thing available.

Now thats just one group of 10 lads but teenagers will be teenagers. If they are doing it I imagine the rest of them within their social circle are too.

"just once a month" as opposed to twice (or more) a week is going to be the big difference there.

Yes, so we are in agreement that people these days are drinking less than previous generations.

Your post was bizarrely claiming that they were probably drinking more based on your nephew going out once a month.

They may go out and drink more in one sitting but it's still going to be far less in total consumption terms than it used to be back in the day if they're only doing it once a month.

Factually people are drinking less than they were even 20 years ago, alcohol sales in pubs, supermarkets and off licenses reflect this.

From RTE,

https://www.rte.ie/brainstorm/2025/0624/1519913-ireland-costs-prices-eurostat-europe-economics-policies/

The cost of alcohol is much higher for Irish consumers than for many of our central European counterparts due to a combination of higher taxes and minimum unit pricing. Taxes differ across different types of alcohol, but are higher here on average. For example, within the EU only Finland has a higher excise duty on beer.

Additionally, the introduction of minimum unit pricing for alcohol in 2022 further increased the cost, both by removing cheap alcohol options and banning special offers that reduced prices below the set minimum unit price. The cheapest price a bottle of wine can be sold for in Ireland is now around €8. For comparison, the average cost of a bottle of wine in Portugal is €4.

Although these policies are sometimes criticised for placing an undue burden on consumers, particularly those who drink responsibly or who are on low incomes, they increase the price of alcohol to better reflect the societal cost of alcohol consumption. The economic costs of alcohol include an additional burden on health services, alcohol related crime and road accidents, and lost economic output.

The most recent estimates from 2014 found the cost of alcohol related harm in Ireland to be €2.35 billon. There is a good evidence base for using minimum pricing to help reduce these harms, and some evidence to suggest that the policy has already reduced the burden on the health service and the average level of alcohol consumption in Ireland.

Where is this evidence base that MUP is reducing these harms? Author should cite “some evidence” the MUP policy has reduced the burden on the HSE?

And lastly alcohol consumption has been decreasing for over 20 years, well before the MUP came into effect.

I feel like young people today thankfully have lots more alternatives to drinking.

They have smartphones, laptops, all kinds of social media platforms, dating apps, music platforms, internet forums. Online gaming has improved so much. The gym and places like Costa/Starbucks seem to be more popular than ever.

When I was 18 (2004), and it wasn’t even that long ago, but most of those things either didn’t exist or were very much in their infancy.

Half the time we used to go to the pub out of boredom or to watch sport because none of us had the channels at home.

I think price has little impact on drinking though. People that want to drink will still drink.

Maybe all the scaremongering from the likes of AAI and the government with the ads about the "dangers" of alcohol has scared young people off alcohol and onto drugs. Bought a bottle of wine the other day and it has the "alcohol causes cancer" warning. Why no such warning on red meat and other processed foods that are directly linked to cancer?

Yeah, but if you are working late, the off license closes at 10pm, some pubs last orders are at 11pm. All due to government mandates. Meanwhile the local coke dealer is available 24 hours a day. I understand from the grapevine some even deliver.

Im in late 30s now, 2 kids, and id say i drink at most once a month now. Price absolutely has a massive influence on that, but so does the hangover. I dont like it. And my mates are a 45 minute drive or a 2.5 hour public transport, so i drive every time. Drinking is hugely overrated.