Darragh O'Brien (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move recommendation No. 12:

In page 87, between lines 18 and 19, to insert the following:
“Excise duty fee on off-licence retailers
59.Within 6 months of the enactment of this Act, the Minister shall bring forward a report on a revised scale of rates of excise duties imposed on off-licence retailers for the sale of intoxicating liquor, such scale to be graduated based on size of retail space such that the duty imposed on small independent retailers would be less than that imposed on large retailers.”.

This is a big issue and I am sure the Department has received submissions in this regard, given a store like Tesco would be paying the same as an O'Briens Wine shop down the road - no relation of mine - or an independent off-licence. There is an opportunity here, first, to level the playing pitch for independent smaller operators in regard to fees for licences and, second, frankly, to raise more money by charging more, and it could either be charged on the square footage or on gross purchases. The big problem is that the State is losing a lot of money because some of the large multiples are selling below cost and we are losing out on excise duties. I will not mention names, but we all know this is the case. What we should do is charge on the stock, which would ensure more money for the Exchequer.
The purpose of the recommendation is to level the playing pitch somewhat because the current situation is unfair.

I am not going to labour the point. Perhaps if the Minister has a response on it, we can see where we go from there.