Brussels, 04/01/2016 (Agence Europe) - On 23 December, the European Court of Justice decided that setting a minimum sales price per unit of alcohol, as the Scottish government has done, is incompatible with EU law.
In its ruling (C-333/14), the Court develops the same reasoning that Advocate General Yves Bot had proposed in September 2015 (see EUROPE 11381). The judges therefore also consider that the Scottish legislation has a restrictive effect on the market - which could be avoided by the introduction of a tax measure designed to increase the price of alcohol instead of a measure imposing a minimum price per unit of alcohol.
The European committee of wine businesses (CEEV) and spiritsEUROPE, two representatives of spirits producers, have hailed this ruling, stating that “it marks a significant step in the battle against the MUP (Ed: minimum unit price for alcohol), as CEEV says. “It is now time to sit again around the table and discuss together on proven efficient measures to put in place to fight alcohol misuse”, said CEEV secretary general, Ignacio Sanchez Recarte. (Original version in French by Jan Kordys)