Liquor producers may have payment deferred over prohibition

Prague, Sept 24 (CTK) - The Czech Finance Ministry is ready to adjust advanced tax payments or defer instalments for the liquor producers harmed by the current partial prohibition declared in reaction to methanol poisoning cases, Finance Minister Miroslav Kalousek (TOP 09) told reporters Monday.

However, the ministry does not consider any compensation for the liquor producers.

"I stress that we are not considering any compensation or payment/tax reliefs," Kalousek said.

He added that the planned reliefs would concern "deadlines and not the volume" of finances, and they would apply to advance tax payments and instalments.

Prime Minister Petr Necas (Civic Democrats, ODS) told journalists that he can imagine the state returning excise tax and VAT to motivate retailers and restaurants to return the liquor of a dubious origin. He added that this was just his personal opinion.

Necas also said compensation for alcohol producers and distributors who were losing profit over the ban on hard liquor sales and exports was not a hot issue on the table.

The Health Ministry banned the sale of spirits containing more than 20 percent of alcohol across the country on September 14 in reaction to a high number of methanol poisoning cases caused by the consumption of bootleg alcohol.

Moreover, the government imposed an immediate ban on all exports of spirits with over 20 percent of alcohol under the pressure of the EU that intended to ban liquor imports from the Czech Republic for up to two months.

Last Wednesday, the government decided to soften the prohibition. The respective ministries should prepare the measures by Wednesday.

"The renewal of a regular market with spirits and alcohol is in the government's interest. We have no reason to delay it by a single day," Necas said

However, the protection of citizens' health and lives is still the main priority, he added.

Kalousek said he firmly hoped that the necessary steps would be taken by the end of the week. They include a new type of stamps on alcohol bottles and special certificates with clear data on the their origin and handling.

Apart from new production, the market with 21 million litres of spirits that ended up in storage facilities over the prohibition must be revived, Kalousek said. The measures to enable the sale of newly produced spirits and the old bottles must be taken simultaneously, he added.

Necas said on Wednesday, the government would primarily like to make progress in permitting the sale of the newly produced liquor with new stamps and certificates.

The cabinet also wants to do its utmost to safely stamp and release to the market as much of the spirits in the storage facilities as possible, he added.

The police accused two people from the Moravia-Silesia Region of causing general menace in connection with the methanol case. They wilfully made a poisonous mixture and sent it into circulation via a distributor, the police announced.