Drinks’ industry pleads for stay on tax hike

DRINKS industry bosses have warned against a return to Budget day increases in alcohol prices, claiming existing tax rates have left them at breaking point.

In a plea for a repeat of last year’s decision by the Department of Finance to leave prices untouched, the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI) said its members were paying the highest taxes in the EU.

They said tax on beer here was 10 times the rate in Germany and seven times that paid in France, while wine was taxed at six times the rate in Belgium and tax on spirits was five times greater than in Italy.