Scots are warming to minimum alcohol pricing, new research by Public Health Scotland suggests.

Minimum pricing was introduced in Scotland in May 2018 with the aim of saving lives and reducing hospital admissions related to excessive alcohol consumption. 

The change to the law saw the minimum price on drinks set at 50p per unit of alcohol.

A 2015 survey suggested mixed feelings about the scheme, with 41.3% of Scots backing it, compared to 33.4% who were against.  

But by 2019, data from the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey revealed that a considerable increase in the proportion of Scots supporting the scheme (49.8%), compared to those who were opposed (27.6%). 

When asked why they supported the scheme, the most common answer from respondents was a perception that alcohol is a problem needing to be addressed in Scotland. 

Dr Karl Ferguson, Public Health Intelligence Advisor at Public Health Scotland, said it was possible that support had grown because people now better understand the policy.

"These findings from the Scottish Social Attitudes Survey show the public is generally more in favour of MUP than against, and that attitudes appear to have grown more favourable over the timeframe during which the policy was implemented," he said. 

"While there are a number of possible explanations for why attitudes have grown more favourable, one interpretation is that the public's understanding of the policy and what it means for them has improved.

"A related possible explanation is that some concerns the public may have held prior to implementation have not been observed." 

Figures released by the NHS in January this year revealed that the amount of pure alcohol sold per person in Scotland's shops fell from 7.4 litres to 7.1 litres in the first year of minimum pricing - representing a drop of 3.6%. 

This contrasted with England and Wales, which did not implement minimum pricing, where the volume of alcohol sold rose from 6.3 to 6.5 litres.

The introduction of minimum pricing in Scotland had the biggest impact on cider sales, which fell by 18.6% after the change to the law drove up the price per unit from 13p to 56p. 

The NHS's research revealed that sales also fell across spirits (3.8%), wine (3%) and beer (1.1%).