The more alcohol a locally brewed beer contains, the higher the price should be. At least, if it were up to The Hague. A majority in the Drenthe parliament sees this differently and believes that local breweries are being hit hard. Deputy Willemien Meeuwissen must change the cabinet’s mind with a letter.
The need is great among small, local breweries, says Member of Parliament Harry Omlo of Ja21 Drenthe. From January 1, 2024, the excise duty on alcohol will increase by 16 percent. “The local regional breweries in particular have sent an emergency signal to politicians. They say: ‘Help us. We can no longer cope with the accumulation of excise duty increases.'”
For example, an earlier increase in excise duties had been announced, but on top of that there will be an increase of 16 percent. Drinking heavy specialty beer in particular is becoming more expensive, because the excise duty is linked to the alcohol percentage. “The higher the alcohol percentage, the higher the beer price will be.”
Drenthe has a number of regional beer breweries that are experiencing the consequences of this, says Omlo. That is why he submitted a motion to have the Provincial Executive take a stand against the cabinet’s upcoming plans. He fears that local beer breweries will halt production.
“Behind every local beer brewer there is a supplier, who is often local. If the beer is no longer produced, those regional products are no longer available.”
Moreover, Omlo is afraid that the competition in the surrounding countries will have the upper hand. “People go shopping across the border.”
A large majority of the members of Parliament agreed with him. The motion was adopted with 27 votes in favor and 14 votes against. “The States have asked us to send a signal in The Hague, so we are going to do that,” says Deputy Meeuwissen.
How does she plan to do that? “We also pay attention to our suppliers of regional products and we will send this letter in that context.”