COMMISSION WILL PRESS ON IN DRINKS EXCISE ROW
November 1st, 2006
BY KEITH NUTHALL
THE EUROPEAN Commission has declared it will not give up on its plans to update minimum alcohol excise duty rates in the European Union (EU), despite the EU Council of Ministers failing to agree the changes yesterday (Tues). The proposals fell largely because of a refusal by Germany, the Czech Republic and Lithuania to countenance any increase in duty for beer; Brussels' proposals would have raised these country's duties by just over 1 Euro cent for half a litre of 5% abv beer. And Commission taxation spokeswoman Maria Assimakopoulou said there ...
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