Cheap alcohol ban 'rushed out to bury bad news of granny tax' Yvette Cooper, the Shadow Home Secretary, said it was a weak attempt to distract from negative reactions to the Budget, after the Chancellor, George Osborne, took £300 from future pensioners in extra tax. Their Budget has gone wrong because pensioners are furious about the granny tax, because middle-earners are shocked to discover they will be paying the higher rate and everyone else is furious to discover they are bringing in a £10,000 tax break for the highest earners in the country, including, we discover, half the Cabinet. The Home Secretary is being used as a human shield for the Chancellor and the Prime Minister and she should have said 'no'. Mrs May responded by accusing her of "bluster" and "political point-scoring." A Downing Street spokesman acknowledged that the timing of the announcement had been brought forward. However, she insisted that this was because ministers wanted to reveal different "good news" on Monday. Under the proposals, ministers want to impose a minimum price per unit of alcohol at around 40p. They will also ban a number of discount deals in an effort to stop the "violent scourge" of alcohol-related disorder on Britain's streets.