Symptoms or disease?

The Government seem serious about imposing a minimum price per unit for alcoholic drinks, and 45p seems to be favourite.  So is there a link between the cost of booze and drunkenness?  As one who used to regularly holiday in the Mediterranean and the Canaries, where drink is, by our standards, ridiculously cheap, I don't think there is.  You see very little public drunkenness in those places, and if you do, chances are that those involved are Brits!  I'm afraid the link appears to be between drunkenness and at least some of us who live in these islands, and I don't think price comes into it.  Chances are that those most affected by such legislation will not be those who cause the problem.