EU court: Swedish taxes on wine and beer do not violate EU lawApril 8, 2008
BRUSSELS, Belgium: Sweden's long-standing practice of levying higher taxes on wine than beer withstood a legal challenge by the European Union on Tuesday.
The Luxembourg-based EU Court of Justice sided with Stockholm against a challenge of its strict alcohol policies by the European Commission which said they violate EU competition rules.
European authorities claimed that Sweden's different tax treatment unfairly discriminated against wine products which are mostly imported from other EU nations.
The court said, however, that those arguments were not proven and that the difference in price between a liter of wine and beer "is not liable to influence consumer behavior."
Tuesday's legal victory overturns a recommendation drafted by an EU court adviser in July. He sided with the commission, claiming the pricing practice was putting wine products at "a disadvantage" compared to beers sold in Sweden. In the country, all liquor is sold in stores owned and controlled by Systembolaget, the state-owned alcohol monopoly.
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