Irish drinkers pay 11 times more excise duty on beer than Germans and 80 times more excise on wine than French, writes Sarah Slater.
Some 15 EU countries pay zero excise tax on wine compared to Irish rate of 80c per glass and taxes make up almost 30% of every drink sold in pubs or restaurants while almost two-thirds or 63% of a bottle of whiskey sold in off-licences.
The figures have resulted in the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI) to call for a 10% excise reduction in the upcoming Budget.
The research shows that overall excise duty on beer, wine and spirits in Ireland is the second highest in EU, with only Finnish drinkers paying more.
Broken down by drinks category, Ireland has the second highest excise tax on wine, the third highest on beer and the third highest on spirits.
A pint of beer in Ireland is levied with an excise rate of 55c, compared to 5c in Germany. Similarly, a glass of wine in Ireland incurs excise of 80c compared to just 1c in France, while 15 EU countries pay no excise on wine whatsoever.
On a bottle of whiskey, excise duty is more than four times higher in Ireland than in Spain, with Irish consumers paying almost €12 compared to the Spanish who pay only €2.69 in tax a difference of €9.23 – even if the whiskey is distilled in Ireland.
The steep rate of excise is separate to the VAT that is also applied on alcohol purchases, meaning the government takes a combined total of between 27% to 29% of the price of every drink sold in a pub or restaurant, claims DIGI.
The government’s tax take is even higher for off-licence sales, with excise and VAT accounting for 63% of the cost of a €27 bottle of whiskey and 48% of the price of an €11 bottle of wine.
The research was compiled by DCU economist Anthony Foley and commissioned by DIGI, which said the high rate of tax is hard to justify given that average consumption of alcohol per adult in Ireland has fallen by more than one third (34.3%) since 2001 and now stands at the EU average.
DIGI warned that high tax rates are putting strain on the indigenous drinks sector when more than 100 pubs are closing annually and drinks producers are grappling with steep new tariffs on exports into the US market.
Foley said that the figures continue to highlight that Ireland maintains “very high alcohol excise rates compared to most of the EU, placing a heavy tax burden on both the Irish drinks sector and consumers relative to other member states.”
Irish drinkers pay 80 times more excise on wine than French.
Dr Sheila Gilheany, of Alcohol Action Ireland, noted that the national independent advocate to reduce alcohol harm, is disappointed by the alcohol industry’s recent call for government to decrease excise duties in the next Budget.
“Excise duties on products such as alcohol and tobacco exist because these are no ordinary products,” she said.
(Pic: Getty Images)
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