Campaign set to run across the school summer holidays
THE Scottish Alcohol Industry Partnership (SAIP) has announced its ‘It’ll Cost You’ campaign will return for the summer months to drive the message around the danger of proxy buying.
The campaign will launch to tie in with the summer holidays to drive home this message that buying alcohol for minors could land you with a fine, a jail sentence or both.
This year’s campaign will run from 29 June in local communities across Scotland as Police Scotland has pledged to work directly with retailers, large and small, and alcohol companies to highlight this message and cut down on the number of people buying alcohol for underage consumers.
Chief Inspector Michelle Grant, Police Scotland, said: “This campaign showcases the benefits of key partners working together to inform the public of dangers associated with underage drinking, as well as the criminal consequences for supplying those under 18 with alcohol.
“Awareness of the criminality of proxy purchase has increased in recent years, since the campaign launched, with reports being made by both retailers and members of the public.”
Evaluations from previous campaigns have shown a steady increase in public awareness around the dangers of proxy buying, says the SAIP, but it continues to remain a serious issue with detections being made by police across Scotland during the course of the 2025 campaign.
Luke McGarty, chair of the SAIP Campaigns Group and head of policy and public affairs at the Scottish Grocers’ Federation, said: “Retailers are determined to stop underage drinking and anti-social behaviour linked to alcohol. Our members are robust in ensuring that under 18s can’t buy alcohol from their stores, so our communities need to support these efforts and be aware of the consequences of proxy purchasing’.
“The “It’ll Cost You!” campaign fits perfectly with SGF’s position of promoting responsible community retailing. We look forward to continuing to work with our partners on the campaign again this year.”
