Practice Area:	Public Policy
Client:	EC DG Taxation and Customs Union
Published:	May, 2010
Tagged:	EC/EEA modelling quantitative analysis report

This report for EC DG Taxation and Customs Union considers the arguments and evidence, for and against changes to the existing minimum duty rates for alcoholic beverages that apply across all EU Member States.  The overarching objective of the study is to examine whether the current structures of alcohol taxation and the minimum rates laid down for the various beverage categories are adequately supporting the effective functioning of the internal market, or whether distortions are caused and adaptations would be appropriate.

It begins with a description of the market for alcoholic beverages, then assesses the current burdens of taxation and economic relationships between the different types of alcoholic beverages in different Member States, finishing with an assessment of the economic impact on the particular beverages and on the different Member States of potential changes to the alcohol directives compared to the current status quo. Estimates are constructed from a detailed dataset of microdata, compiled especially for the report.