The Government will be forced to defend plans for minimum alcohol pricing to their opponents on Thursday after the Conservatives chose to use their debating time in Holyrood to speak out in opposition to the proposals.
Deputy Leader Murdo Fraser insists the plans will penalise responsible drinkers and damage the country's alcohol industry. He will be supported by the Liberal Democrats, who have said they will use the debate to try to vote down moves to impose a price per unit on alcoholic drinks.
However, Mr Fraser is also expected to use discussions to force the hand of Labour. The party has called on the SNP to publish its legal advice on minimum pricing, however, Labour has so far refused to say categorically whether it would support or oppose the programme.
Murdo Fraser argued: "The facts show that the SNP's blanket minimum pricing policy would cost our economy £600 million in whisky exports each year - £6 billion over 10 years. Hundreds of jobs would be under threat."
The Liberal Democrats justice spokesman Robert Brown stated: "Minimum pricing will not tackle the underlying reasons that make people drink themselves stupid in the first place."
He added: "It would be far better for SNP ministers to focus on changing Scotland's fundamental cultural relationship with alcohol."
While the Scottish Government insists minimum pricing would help tackle booze abuse across Scotland, SNP ministers have so far failed to specify how the move would affect the prices of particular drinks.
While the Scottish Government has put forward plans to bring in a minimum price per unit for alcohol, ministers have yet to specify what this would be. However, Health Secretary Nicola Sturgeon insists the majority of drinks would be unaffected if proposals to set the price at 40p per unit were adopted.
She insists the initiative is designed to push up the cost of the sorts of drinks which are sold at "rock bottom prices" and are popular with problem drinkers.
A survey of prices in supermarkets showed cheap white cider would be more expensive under the plans.
However, the Government insists many bottles of Scotch are already more expensive than the £11.20 which would become the minimum under guide prices.
Ms Sturgeon also said the cost of popular brands of beer and wine would remain unchanged, insisting the supermarket survey results would "shatter the myth that minimum pricing would punish responsible drinkers".
Instead she stated: "The truth is that the great majority of drinks would see no price rise at all.
"In fact, it would be the high-strength products sold for rock bottom prices and favoured by problem drinkers that would see their cost increase - in some cases more than doubling.
"Health experts say this would make the heaviest drinkers reduce their consumption."
The Government insists it has the right to introduce minimum pricing for booze, but the Tories disagree.
It follows a ruling in the European Court last month, which outlawed similar schemes on the continent relating to the cost of cigarettes. Ministers in Austria, France and Ireland introduced a minimum tobacco price in a bid to improve health.
Murdo Fraser called the ruling a "hammer blow" and said: "Blanket minimum pricing is probably illegal, penalises responsible drinkers, damages the Scotch whisky industry and does nothing to tackle the root of the problem."
At the time, Nicola Sturgeon said: "Obviously, we rely on our own legal advice to progress this policy which is fair, proportionate and necessary to protect public health in Scotland."
Last updated: 05 November 2009, 08:22
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