Scottish Government alcohol policy documentation: FOI release

Information requested

Any internal policy, guidance, or recorded discussions on monitoring or limiting alcohol-related expenditure by government departments.

Any correspondence or briefings addressing potential contradictions between alcohol-related spending/investment and Scotland’s public health policies (e.g. Minimum Unit Pricing, alcohol-related harm reduction strategies).

Response

While our aim is to provide information whenever possible, in this instance the Scottish Government does not have some of the information you have requested.

Regarding your request for:

Any internal policy, guidance, or recorded discussions on monitoring or limiting alcohol-related expenditure by government departments.

I have interpreted this to ask for information relating the Government’s spending on alcohol products from financial years of 2021/22, 2022/23, 2023/24.

The Scottish Government’s internal guidance on alcohol is attached (Annex A & B). It includes:

• Alcohol policy
• Extract from ‘ Order hospitality’ guidance
• Extract from ‘Travel and subsistence rules’
• Extract from ‘Guide Electronic purchasing card (ePC)
• Substance Use policy

Please note I have only included extracts of the guidance that are relevant to the request.

With regard to ‘recorded discussions on monitoring or limiting alcohol-related expenditure by government departments’ please note that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have asked for because the information does not exist.

This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.

With regard to your request for ‘any correspondence or briefings addressing potential contradictions between alcohol-related spending/investment and Scotland’s public health policies (e.g. Minimum Unit Pricing, alcohol related harm reduction strategies’ please note that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have asked for because the information does not exist.

This is a formal notice under section 17(1) of FOISA that the Scottish Government does not have the information you have requested.

About FOI

The Scottish Government is committed to publishing all information released in response to Freedom of Information requests. View all FOI responses at https://www.gov.scot/foi-responses.

FOI 202500476817 - Information released - Annex A and Annex B

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