I'm not sure that's true. Charges for e.g. plastic bags in supermarkets had a dramatic effect across the entire country. Even if you can afford an expense, pe

I'm not sure that's true. Charges for e.g. plastic bags in supermarkets had a dramatic effect across the entire country. Even if you can afford an expense, people don't like paying for things if they don't have to. When saving money is easy--like bringing some old bags to the supermarket, people do adapt their behaviour. It adds up over time to be a decent saving. That said, the problems with alcoholism often affect the less well off, so if it did materially affect them more, then that's probably not a particularly bad thing in terms of satisfying the objectives for the change. This law is primarily affecting the purchase of low quality and high alcohol beverages, like really cheap ciders and lagers. I occasionally buy bottled real ale, and the price has not changed at all. It's around £1.65-£1.80 per bottle in a supermarket. Still much cheaper than at the pub, but several times more what a multipack of cheap cans cost. If the objective is to improve public health by making binge drinking harder, then I think the pricing will actually be effective. It worked for smoking. The pricing of the cheap booze in supermarkets was ridiculously cheap, and I personally think that while it might have benefitted the drinks companies and the supermarkets, it's a net negative for society at large, and overall many people and their families will have their quality of life improved by the change. The change is not stopping purchase of alcohol, or even raising the price of most drinks, but it is raising the price of the stuff people binge on. If you're a moderate and responsible drinker, then you'll not even notice the difference.