Alcopops, cider and strong lager have all come down in price and, coupled with wide promotion of two-for-one offers on “party packs”, this has led to criticism that supermarkets are encouraging people to drink too much.

According to Scotlands Justice Secretary Kenny MacAskill, he wants to stop the over-promotion of alcohol.

"Tackling Scotland’s booze culture is a priority for the SNP administration."

But the government concedes there is in fact little they can do to take on the supermarkets, which use cheap booze as the carrot which brings in the customers who are shopping for the family.

The latest figures from a price-comparison site show Carlsberg Lager has fallen in price at Tesco, Asda, Sainsbury’s and online supermarket Ocado over the past 12 months.

Tesco is now selling a 12-pack of Carlsberg for £6.76 – a year ago it cost £7.99. The price of alcopop brand Smirnoff Ice has also fallen across the board, with the Asda price for a four-pack going down from £4.37 to £3.47 – a drop of 20.6 per cent.

Prices for strong cider and Australian wine have also decreased, with two litres of Strongbow down 6.8 per cent at Sainsbury’s, with the price falling from £3.09 to £2.88.

Compare that if you will, with the prices of foods, which have risen pretty much across the board, with family staples like bread and dairy products showing some of the highest rises.

Figures last month showed that over the 12 months to May, the cost of basic foodstuffs rose by 19.1 per cent.

During that time, the cost of an iceberg lettuce from Tesco rose from 49p to 99p. A loaf of white, sliced bread from Tesco, Asda and Sainsbury’s rose by an average of 20.4 per cent. Butter also rose significantly, with Asda, Tesco and Sainsbury’s own-brand butter all rising by 62.1 per cent.

A spokeswoman for the Royal College of Physicians said it viewed the latest figures with alarm. “Alcohol is not a commodity like food – it does major harm and causes a huge amount of illness and death,” she said.

“The college and the Alcohol Health Alliance want to stop supermarkets being able to discount alcohol or put on special promotions, which lead them to sell alcohol at below-cost prices.

Frank Soodeen, a spokesman for Alcohol Concern, said: “As long as supermarkets are prepared to use cheap alcohol as a bribe, the rates of misuse and illness are going to rise.”

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