SCOTRAIL’s alcohol ban is to stay in place for the “foreseeable future,” the transport firm has confirmed. 

The strict rule forbidding booze was brought in at the start of the Covid pandemic in a bid to keep travellers socially distant. 

Previously, passengers could drink before 9pm and were able to buy beer, wine and spirits on most mainline trains. 

Taking to Twitter on Friday, the publicly owned train firm tweeted: “We’ve agreed with the Scottish Government that we’ll keep our current alcohol ban in place for the foreseeable future.”

However, they did say that the policy would be “reviewed as part of the Scottish Government’s National Conversation on Rail.”

Jenny Gilruth, the transport minister, has previously said that there should be a discussion with passengers, MSPs and women’s groups about how the service should run now that it is in public ownership.

Earlier this week, David Simpson, ScotRail’s service delivery director, said the ban had been “successful particularly in containing some of the antisocial behaviour alcohol could often generate on some services”.

He added: “I doubt it will be permanent. We want to make sure that we’ve covered all the bases before we lift it and we’ve taken into account passengers’ views to make sure that where alcohol is consumed it is done so safely and appropriately on people’s journeys.”