A ban on multi-buy drink promotions in Scotland has not cut the amount of alcohol bought by consumers, according to a study.
The drinks industry appears to have countered the move by slashing prices, researchers suggest.
The Scottish Government was among the first in the world to call a halt to offers such as buy one, get one free to tackle alcohol-related harm.
The ban was implemented in Scotland in October 2011 as part of the Alcohol Act 2010.
But a team from the Behaviour and Health Research Unit, a collaboration between East Anglia and Cambridge universities, said the policy appeared to have been ineffective.
They studied household purchasing data from the Kantar WorldPanel and found no evidence that the ban had reduced the purchasing of beer, cider, wine, spirits and flavoured alcohol drinks as of June 2012. In addition, there was no cut in the total amount of units of alcohol bought.
Researchers found Scottish consumers began to buy less beer and cider per shopping trip, but bought these drinks more frequently, leaving the amount purchased unchanged.
Lead author Ryota Nakamura, from East Anglia University’s Norwich Medical School, said: “The industry appears to have responded to the ban by replacing multi-buy with simple price reduction, which made it possible for Scottish consumers to buy alcohol at a discounted price but with a smaller financial outlay. This might have mitigated the intended effects of the policy.”
Professor Theresa Marteau, from Cambridge University, said: “This study provides timely evidence on the seeming ineffectiveness of an intervention designed to reduce alcohol consumption.”
The team said the research demonstrated the need for stronger measures to reduce alcohol-related harm in the UK.
Professor Marc Suhrcke, from East Anglia University’s Norwich Medical School, said: “More encompassing policy will be needed to achieve the goal of reducing excessive alcohol consumption and related harms.”