Alcohol Minimum Unit Pricing (MUP) was introduced in Scotland in May 2018. Existing evidence suggests MUP can reduce drinking in the general population, but there is little evidence regarding its impact on vulnerable groups. This qualitative study aimed to capture the experiences of MUP among homeless drinkers, street drinkers, and the support services that work with them.

Key findings:

• Homeless and street drinker interviewees were generally aware of MUP but it was accorded lower priority in their hierarchy of multiple concerns than other difficulties they faced on a day-to-day basis.
• Reported impacts on the quantity and type of alcohol consumed were varied. Some individuals reduced their drinking, some were unaffected, some switched drinks, and for some the balance of alcohol vis-à-vis drugs consumed shifted toward the latter.
• MUP exacerbated an existing tendency for a minority of problem drinkers to beg or steal to obtain alcohol, or to prioritise acquisition of alcohol over necessities such as food, when they ran out of money.
• MUP had negligible if any discernible impact on services that work with homeless and street drinkers.
• Policy makers in Scotland need to devise mitigations for the unintended outcomes affecting a minority of homeless and street drinkers. Other countries considering MUP should support stakeholders prior to implementation to exploit potential benefits as well as mitigate unintended consequences.