Supermarkets to shell out Rs.15-Rs.20m when converting bar licenses

By Ashwin  Hemmathagama – Our Lobby Correspondent

If passed Budget 2016 proposals could stop supermarket chains from purchasing bar licenses from holders and converting them in to liquor shop licenses with no payment made to the Government with Rs.15 million – Rs.20 million to be charged by Excise Department for a license conversion and relocation.

Minister of Finance Ravi Karunanayake responding to a supplementary question raised by UPFA Matara District MP Dullas Alahapperuma said: “Supermarkets used to pay the bar license holders and convert the permits into liquor shop licence. This will not be allowed unless they pay the Government.”

According to Minister the income from excise tax will not reduce even though the price of liquor were increased weeks before the budget. “Liquor tax income will not reduce but will be increased by Rs.250 million from the proposals President made in this House prior to the Budget. The President made these changes in par with his private policies. Anyway, last year over 400 permits were issued to import ethanol. This year 353 permits were issued out of which around 20 permits were to be used to import ethanol used in liquor production,” added Minister Karunanayake.

Making a few suggestions MP Alahapperuma said: “Instead of using a term in Sinhala language (Math Pan) giving the liquor importance and the status of a sacred drink we should change the identification of liquor as intoxication water (Math Wathura) in all official document from now. Before this Budget was presented here in the Parliament liquor prices were increased. But from this Budget you expect earn Rs.3,000 million as an tax increase on liquor. Form tobacco and casino Rs.2,000 million and liquor production tax of Rs.16,000 million. So, the total earnings from liquor, tobacco, and casino sector will be Rs.21,000 million.”