Brussels, 25/02/2002 (Agence Europe) - A spokesperson for the Taxation Commissioner Frits Bolkestein has said that the Commission will be unveiling a proposal in April or May on alcohol excise duty but that nothing was known about its content yet. Jonathan Todd was responding to the growing concern being expressed particularly in Italy, where Coldiretti (a group of small farmers' associations) has slammed the Commission's plans in a press release in which it says the Commission will be introducing a minimum excise duty of EUR 0.14 per litre for wine under pressure from the beer lobby (wine is not subject to duty under current EU legislation). Such a measure would cost the industry EUR 740 million, explains Coldiretti.
The Commission has announced that it plans to harmonise alcohol duty in the EU's future taxation strategy (see EUROPE of 24 May 2001). In a resolution adopted in September 1996 (by one casting vote), the EP called on the Commission to prepare a proposal on alcohol duty.