Alcohol|Among others, Antti Neimala, who has worked for Finnish entrepreneurs for a long time, has been chosen for the task of investigation.
Government start preparations for allowing the sale of wines with a maximum of 15% in grocery stores.
The Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and the Ministry of Labor and Economic Affairs have chosen to be the evaluator Antti Neimalan.
Neimala has worked, among other things, as a department head in the Ministry of Employment and the Economy, and as director general and consumer ombudsman of the Finnish Competition and Consumer Agency.
Neimala has also worked for a long time as a director and vice president of Finnish entrepreneurs. He also has a background in the Central Chamber of Commerce. He has assisted coalition ministers as a special assistant in the 1990s.
Finnish entrepreneurs and the Central Chamber of Commerce have pushed for the abolition of Alko’s monopoly.
Prime minister Petteri Orpon The goal of the (kok) government program is to open the market and increase competition in certain industries, including the sale of alcohol.
Statement is not surprising in itself, as it has been agreed upon in the government program.
In the spring 2023 government negotiations, the coalition still did not get wines to the stores, mainly because of the Christian Democrats because of resistance. However, the government decided to investigate the matter.
The report is scheduled to be completed on March 15, i.e. before the government’s mid-term party, which will be held in the spring of 2025. The schedule has been set so that the reform can still be implemented during this government’s term, if an agreement is reached.
The investigating officer the task is to find out different implementation options for the liberalization of wine sales.
He assesses the impact of the exemption on, among other things, the health and well-being of the population, employees, business freedom, market functionality and competition, alcohol control, public finances, and internal security and order.
The evaluator also evaluates the competition law and EU law boundary conditions of the implementation options.
The investigation officer’s work is guided and monitored by a steering group, chaired by the head of department Taneli Puumalainen from the Ministry of Social Affairs and Health and as vice-chairman the head of department Jan Hjelt from the Ministry of Labor and the Economy.
in Finland is an exclusive system for the retail sale of alcohol, except for the sale of fermented alcoholic beverages containing a maximum of eight percent alcohol by volume and alcoholic beverages co
ntaining a maximum of 5.5 percent alcohol in other ways, subject to a permit, in grocery stores and liquor stores.
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