Typical lie that the price is meant to “save lives.” It’s a tax, and, like all taxes, it’s meant to further enrich the state, with little regard for the people it’s supposed to represent. One would think the genius who proposed the tax has spent time in Sacramento, CA.
Hard to see how this could be a tax, since in the UK excise duty on alcohol is paid by quantity, not price (so same duty on a pint of beer whatever the price). So if this minimum price did have the effect of lowering consumption, it would actually reduce not increase income to the government.