Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond has suggested that Scotland is a “nation of drunks” and that he is “significantly” concerned by the nation’s relationship with alcohol.
In an interview with former Labour spin-doctor Alistair Campbell which was published in GQ magazine on Thursday, Mr Salmond explained that apparent drinking problems stemmed from: “the availability of cheap alcohol and the cultural changes that has introduced.”
“When we were young we would go out for a drink. People now go out drunk, having drunk cheap booze before. That is social change for the worse,” he said.
“Then there is something deep about Scotland’s relationship with alcohol that is about self-image – lack of confidence, maybe, as a nation – and we do have to do something about it.”
He then went on to defend the Scottish Government’s plan to introduce minimum alcohol pricing, which has been criticised by the whisky industry.
“I promote whisky,” Mr Salmond told Mr Campbell.
“I do it on the argument that it’s a quality drink, has a worldwide cachet and that its recent great success in markets like China is about social emulation and authenticity, not cheapness.
"My argument is that if you are promoting it as authentic and of great worth, you cannot promote it from a nation of drunks. You’ll never be able to say it is healthy and life giving, but you can say it’s authentic and high quality," he said. » | Kashmira Gander | Thursday, May 01, 2014
SPIEGEL ONLINE: Alex Salmond: Regierungschef nennt Schottland "Nation der Säufer": Alex Salmond geht mit seinen Landsleuten hart ins Gericht. Schottland habe ein gravierendes Alkoholproblem, diagnostiziert der Regierungschef. Die Opposition ist empört » | syd | Freitag, 02. Mai 2014
