Iceland review - 2004, Síða 31

strange binge drinking or weekend drinking
approach to alcohol. However Gunnlaugsson
says that “since the government’s recent pol-
icy changes – more stores, longer hours of
operation, the sale of beer – alcohol is
becoming less of a demon substance.”
After the wine deal went down with Spain,
the Icelandic government opened a couple
of stores where consumers could purchase
wine and hard liquor and, as with all
monopolies, the price was high. The two
separate monopolies – alcohol and tobacco
– merged in 1961 to create The State
Alcohol and Tobacco Monopoly of Iceland
(ATVR), which controls the sale of all alcohol
above 2.25%. ATVR generated ISK seven bil-
lion (a bit more than USD 95 million) in rev-
enue last year. As is the case with the other
Nordic nations who have stayed true to the
temperance movement, Iceland’s govern-
ment maintains total control of the market
in order to limit damage from drinking. But
the existence of state alcohol monopolies in
these countries has come under attack, as a
free market and a consumer economy will
only take so much from politicians.
Though Iceland is not a member of the
European Union (EU), it is part of the
European Economic Area (EEA) and the
European Free Trade Association (EFTA) and
is, therefore, subjected to those treaties,
courts and conventions – member nations
have urged the Nordic countries to revise
their alcohol policies. Last year, for example,
Denmark lowered its taxes on hard liquor by
45% and Finland lowered its taxes on all
liquor by 33%. However, Iceland’s taxation
policy has not changed, so consumers in
Iceland pay a tax of about ISK 160 (USD
2.20) per litre of beer, the highest in Europe.
Compare this to the Irish, who come in sec-
ond, with a tax of around ISK 90 (USD 1.24)
for the same amount.
Who’s gonna pay for this?
The Icelandic tourist industry is growing
quickly. Last year more tourists visited
Iceland than are residents of this country.
ICELAND REVIEW 29
The earliest temperance communities
in Europe were in Norway and Sweden,
and back then what was good for
Norway was good for Iceland. Thus,
temperance and abstinence became the
bedrock of education and
legislation in Icelandic society.
Alcohol 14.6.2004 21:26 Page 29