July 2020 not only marks the start of the German Council Presidency but also the end of lengthy discussions on the revision of the excise structures directive, initially started with the objective to promote greater equality in excise duties between alcoholic beverages. At the conclusion of these negotiations, it is fair to say that this objective has not been achieved.
In practicable terms, the impact of this decision becomes even more jarring: in Malta, for example, a ‘small independent producer’ of wine can now have a theoretical market share of not less than 15% (!). Thus, six ‘small independent producers’ can supply the country’s entire wine market while benefitting from an excise duty cut of up to 50%. Needless to say, other alcoholic beverages cannot benefit from such preferential treatment.
The European Commission, it seems, shares our less than enthused reception to this decision. In fact, continuing with the Maltese example, it stated publicly that it “disagrees with the introduction on an increased threshold of 20,000 hectolitres of wine per annum for Malta due to the possible market and trade distortions risks (…)”.
All is not lost, however. The Directive leaves significant room to manoeuvre to the Member States when it comes to the transposition into national law. Some Member States have already signalled their intention to leave existing national rules unchanged – and spiritsEUROPE will continue to advocate that all beverage categories are treated fairly.
