The below-cost selling of alcohol by retailers means that stores can claim a VAT refund on the difference between the cost price and the actual below-cost sale price of alcohol, an Oireachtas Sub-Committee on Health and Children heard recently.

In a presentation to the Committee, Evelyn Jones, Chairperson of the National Off-Licence Association (NOffLA), showed that when alcohol is sold below cost price, the retailer is entitled to a refund of the VAT differential. “In effect, this means that the Government and taxpayers are subsidising those large retailers who can afford to sell alcohol below cost price,” Committee Chairman Jerry Buttimer TD said.

“This cannot be permitted to continue. We need to immediately address this anomaly, as it flies in the face of Government policy. At a recent meeting of the Health Committee, Minister of State Róisín Shortall TD confirmed that she wanted to tackle the issue of alcohol pricing. Yet we have tax refunds that facilitate below-cost selling. We must have a consistent policy approach. The taxation system should not be an obstruction to Government policy objectives — it should facilitate the attainment of Government’s policy aims,” Deputy Buttimer said.