§ Mr. GalbraithTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to restrict the amount of beer for personal consumption which can be imported from the rest of the EU into the United Kingdom; and if he will make a statement. [1165]
§ Mr. OppenheimUnder the provisions of the Excise Duty (Personal Reliefs) Order 1992, based on Council directive 92/12/EEC, travellers may bring into the UK alcohol, purchased for their own use, duty and tax paid in another EU country, without further liability to UK duty and tax. There is no restriction on the quantity of such goods that an individual can purchase. The directive, however, provides indicative levels, agreed by all member420W states, which can assist Customs officers in determining whether goods are in fact intended for commercial use—for beer the level is 110 litres. Although there is no fiscal frontier, a person holding such goods may be challenged by a Customs officer anywhere in the UK, and must be able to satisfy the officer that goods in excess of the indicative levels are not for a commercial purpose.
§ Mr. GalbraithTo ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer what plans he has to equalise the duty on beer with that applying in other European countries; and if he will make a statement. [1166]
§ Mr. OppenheimThe Government would like to see some movement towards the equalisation of duty rates on beer within the EU through the mechanism of the European Commission's biennial review of the minimum rates of excise duty. The next review is due by the end of 1996. Meanwhile, in reaching his Budget decisions, the Chancellor of the Exchequer takes a range of factors into account, including the rates of duty applied by our near neighbours in the European Union.