Government approves bill limiting alcohol sales, restricting alcohol advertising
The Estonian government confirmed a bill making changes to the Alcohol Act and Advertising Act before sending it on to the Riigikogu, the unicameral parliament of Estonia.
According to Minister of Health and Labour Jevgeni Ossinovski, it was promised at the birth of the new ruling coalition that they would see through to completion a discussion that had begun in the previous government already on how to protect the Estonian people, particularly the health of children and youth, by improving regulations of alcohol availability and alcohol advertising
Regulating alcohol availability
The bill’s most recent changes affect requirements applicable to stores which will significantly decrease the open display of alcoholic beverages.
In the future, alcoholic beverages will have to be placed separately from other products and cannot be prominently visible from outside,” Ossinovski said.
This requirement will first and foremost affect stores which place alcohol packaging in their windows or who otherwise display alcohol outside of their sales floor.
Once the law goes into effect, these stores must relocate the displays of alcohol elsewhere on their sales floor or for example switch to opaque display cases.”
The bill will also introduce extra restrictions for stores with a sales floor of over 450 square meters in size; alcohol in these stores will not be permitted to be visible from the rest of the sales floor.
The bill will also increase requirements for alcohol retailers to verify the age of buyers. Changes to the law will allow for control purchases to be made both to verify the appropriate restriction on the sale of alcohol to minors as well as discover the sale of bootleg alcohol.
Regulating alcohol advertising
In the future, alcohol advertising must be sparse in information, focus on the product itself and not present the product in a positive context. The bill stipulates that alcohol advertising may not reference the positive effects of alcohol or the link betwen consuming alcohol and holidays and events.
Following Finland’s example, with the exception of on their own page, alcohol advertising on the part of alcohol distributors will be banned from social media entirely,” Ossinovski explained.
Other restrictions include:
- Bans on outdoor advertising,
- Bans on television and radio ads for alcohol before 10 p.m. (compared to the previous 9 p.m.) and
- Bans on advertising appearing on the front and back covers of supplements included with periodicals.
- In stores, alcohol tastings and happy hours in which alcohol is sold for cheaper than usual during specific hours will be banned and alcohol may not be sold for cheaper in multipacks than as individual bottles.
The cap on fines for legal persons violating advertising laws will be increased to €50,000. Maximum fines for legal persons violating alcohol laws will also be increased. Should the bill be passed in the Riigikogu, the law will go fully into effect beginning Jan. 1, 2018.
