Scottish Government Proposes Price Cap On Essential Foods

Just wondering the same, MawsRosie

When I last looked, there were 57 Members of Parliament representing Scottish Constituencies elected to Westminster in 2024:

37 Labour
8 SNP
6 Conservative
6 Liberal Democrat

Perhaps they've all resigned since I posted earlier today.

butterandjam

JenniRen

"Look at your own government"

Do you mean the UK Government? I thought Scotland returned 57 MPs to Westminster?

Then you are seriously misinformed.

There are 129 MSPs in the Scottish Parliament and 57 MPs at Westminster representing Scottish constituencies .
How is JenniRen misinformed?

Gosh, I'm not a virtuous rescuer I hope.

The whole ready meal debate is complicated.

So much gone wrong, it's overwhelming really.

Paddyann54
You have no idea of what's actually going on for the majority of folk. I am sick hearing about this for poverty, that for poverty. At times I think I must be a millionaire as the only benefit I collect is a state pension.
Have you looked at the deterioration of education, the terrible state of NHS (I can give you real life examples of how bad it is), public services (2 hourly bus service just to go to bus terminus to get a bus to a hospital or to get another bus to hospital depending on which end of county hospital is located. No bus to Drs, dentist, church, community centre and I live in a town. Emergency services, never been so low in morale, numbers, and funding. 20 years of SNP chaos and you think it's all down to Tories. The free bus fares for youngsters has caused problems with the young using them to party in. Why is it a 16 year old is regarded in legal and educational matters as a child basically not realising the repercussions of actions yet in Scotland can vote in Local Elections helping influence other peoples lives. Says it all about SNP, will do anything to get a vote.

I’m not judging. I’m observing and just posted what I see.

People have reasons for using ready meals. They have reasons for needing snack foods.

It’s no use capping “the basics” if the basics aren’t what people buy and use and eat. Better to cap what they do actually eat if you want to help them financially.

If you want to improve health as well that’ll need some thinking about because you’ll need to combine quick and easy with nutrition.

You can be a virtuous “rescuer” of those you think need your speaking up for them. Or you can treat them like real people who have a say in how they want to live.

I agree. Reality matters. We've endlessly debated on here how people could cook healthier meals more cheaply but the reality seems that the poorest in our communities actually choose other priorities for their money. Debating why that should be would be interesting.

None of my adult children buy ready meals. However, you wouldn't know what they eat, because their food is delivered. Many working families do this.
They do not push a trolley around a supermarket.

Lathyrus3

I think its an interesting idea that could show real health benefits.

However, looking at people's family shops in their trolleys, I’m not sure how much they use basic foodstuffs.

Mostly theres a lot of ready meals and snacks.

Judge not....

If you really want to help you have to work with reality not idealism.

Cossy

Lathyrus3

I think its an interesting idea that could show real health benefits.

However, looking at people's family shops in their trolleys, I’m not sure how much they use basic foodstuffs.

Mostly theres a lot of ready meals and snacks.

Personally, I think your last comment is a gross exaggeration and a big insult to many families!!

Its not an insult. Its an observation.

Moral indignation wont change whats in the trolleys.

It is what it is.

nanna8

75p for a sliced loaf? What a joke. You don’t know how good you have it. I am green with envy. Try $5 and that is just an ordinary one here. Food in the UK is already very cheap. Really.

Ah, but as we’ve said so many times before, it’s all relative and it’s not enough to simply look at the price of food.

75p for a sliced loaf? What a joke. You don’t know how good you have it. I am green with envy. Try $5 and that is just an ordinary one here. Food in the UK is already very cheap. Really.

Honestly I am sick to death of the SNP bad stories .

So am I. Bad decisions by the SNP are an embarrassment to Scotland.

paddyann54

If the Scottish government found a cure for cancer there would be an uproar..they would be causing oncologists to lose their jobs or making big pharma bankrupt!
Honestly I am sick to death of the SNP bad stories .
Look at your own government pocketing cash from dubious people…and doing nothing for the citizens who voted for them.
Then maybe look at the facts.
SNP have worked for the people and no it’s not all unemployed or brain dead who voted for them for them.
We are just people who want control of our own country…like the other 60+ countries who celebrate their Independence from Westminster every year .
My only comment on this thread ,Deal with the mess Tories of both red and blue have and are making of government .Then you might have the right to talk down to us.

So you are looking forward enthusiastically as the Scottish Government decides to tank its economy and bring the whole population into poverty.

Since when has 'Poverty for all' been a rallying call for a successful political party.

I am beginning to understand why my Scottish ancestors first emigrated from Scotland to Ireland and then, moved on to England.

Cossy

Lathyrus3

I think its an interesting idea that could show real health benefits.

However, looking at people's family shops in their trolleys, I’m not sure how much they use basic foodstuffs.

Mostly theres a lot of ready meals and snacks.

Personally, I think your last comment is a gross exaggeration and a big insult to many families!!

Its unfortunately not an exaggeration in Scotland. (I live here)

Scotland continues to record a significantly lower life expectancy compared to other countries in the UK and Western Europe, and a high incidence of obesity, T2 diabetes and heart disease. .

It's about diet.

In Scotland's most deprived communities, adult obesity rates persistently exceed those living in the least deprived areas. Children living in our most deprived communities are
twice as likely to be at risk of overweight compared to those in our least deprived. Along with the risk of developing T2 diabetes and heart problems

publichealthscotland.scot/media/28241/improving-scotlands-diet-and-weight-final.pdf

JenniRen

"Look at your own government"

Do you mean the UK Government? I thought Scotland returned 57 MPs to Westminster?

Then you are seriously misinformed.

Margs

Naturally, retailers are up in arms.

Oh, the poor wee lambs being taken to task for their price-gouging antics!

Well they can stop whining - they've had this coming since Liz Truss trashed the economy and the weekly shop went insane.

The increase in milk egg and dairy costs (the foods SNP are proposing to cap) reflects the high rise in production costs. Which have nothing to do with Liz Truss, or supermarket price gouging.

It's caused by global issues beyond the control of UK supermarkets or farmers. A combination of higher fuel costs, higher fertiliser costs, higher animal feed costs and climate change .

Farmers will only produce food if they can make a living from it.

If producing eggs milk and cheese becomes uneconomic, farmers will either go bust or diversify. This summers drought has parched grazing land, and decimated the production of hay straw and grain. A lot of dairy farmers face financial ruin over winter because they won't be able to meet the costs of imported feed.

The SNP fail to grasp that because they aren't listening to the farmers, OR the retailers.

Lathyrus3

I think its an interesting idea that could show real health benefits.

However, looking at people's family shops in their trolleys, I’m not sure how much they use basic foodstuffs.

Mostly theres a lot of ready meals and snacks.

Personally, I think your last comment is a gross exaggeration and a big insult to many families!!

I think its an interesting idea that could show real health benefits.

However, looking at people's family shops in their trolleys, I’m not sure how much they use basic foodstuffs.

Mostly theres a lot of ready meals and snacks.

The MP/MSP stats were in response to JenniRen

The SNP have 8 MPs in Westminster.
57 MSPs in Holyrood.
The SNP is a minority government in Scotland, generally supported by the Green Party

The SNP's support dropped by nearly 10% in the May Election. There was a 53% turnout.

Due to the drop in support they are hell bent on being seen to be pursuing Independence (as that's now their hard core support and many of them are flailing).

Hence the food price cap debacle as explained in my post above.

This isn’t new policy, is it? It’s part of the SNP manifesto which was published in April 2026 the costs of which are to be met by large supermarkets, if they are not already doing so.

s3-eu-west-2.amazonaws.com/www.snp.org/uploads/2026/04/2026-05-0120SNP20The20Scottish20Parliament20Election2020262072pp20COMPLETE20no-crops.pdf

Food Pricing

The escalating cost of living crisis, particularly the sharp rise in food prices, requires targeted intervention to protect people’s ability to afford essentials. This is vital to ensure that everyone can get a balanced diet that meets nutritional needs.

That’s why we will take a public health intervention to establish statutory price ceilings on a basket of 20 to 50 essential food items at large supermarkets, such as bread, milk and eggs to provide tangible relief to families struggling with grocery bills, ensuring that necessities for a balanced diet remain affordable.

The system would require large supermarkets to make one example line of the listed essential food items available at the capped price and would not require them to make every variation of that type of food they stock available at that price. As with Minimum Unit Pricing, we would introduce a sunset clause through the legislation to ensure that it was effective in order to continue.

As a public health measure similar to the minimum unit price of alcohol, we are calling on the UK Government not to block this action through their flawed Internal Market Act. Crucially, this will be implemented alongside a robust support framework designed to shield Scottish producers with support mechanisms and monitoring to ensure that this will not be allowed to impact on farmers and food producers and we will work with them to ensure supermarkets make the change.

Forgive me if I am missing something but doesn’t it say this is about large supermarkets and only requires one essential food item in each category to be price capped?

Isn’t this what already happens with own brand and value lines anyway?

We don’t know the detail of supermarket pricing, which products are loss leaders, how much of the loss on an own brand is loaded onto the price of brands.

Why is the cost of one 420g tin of Tesco baked beans 40p and a 415g tin of Heinz baked beans £1.40?

It won't be because it costs Heinz that much more to produce a tin of beans. For all we know, own brands are made at the same factory.

Why is a Tesco white sliced loaf 75p and the Hovis version £1.25?

Why is Tesco 500g butter spread £1.40 and Clover £2.60?

There might be some all differences in quality but not enough to pay double or almost double if one is on a tight budget.

If we are talking about fresh products with short shelf lives, milk, eggs, fresh fruit and vegetable etc again, won't any losses through capped prices be loaded onto other non-essential or branded products as already happens?

"Look at your own government"

Do you mean the UK Government? I thought Scotland returned 57 MPs to Westminster?

Oh Paddyann get off your defensive ScotNat horse, please!
Nobody is having a go at Scotland per se just at an economic policy which may have short term appeal but is wrong on so many levels. What M0nica and the others have said is true and turning it into a pseudo political Red/Blue argument is just kicking the can down the road. Nobody is talking down to anybody so there is no need to be so adversarial.
A rammy in an empty room springs to mind.

My huge concern here, much I as support the principle of this, is farmers.

It won’t be the retailers or the wholesalers who lose out, it’ll be the farmers and this could then ultimately affect our food supply as these “caps” could well push some small farmers out of business!