Federal government capping excise tax on alcohol after outcry
The 2023 federal budget includes a major win for the beer, wine and spirits industries.
The increase in excise duties on all alcoholic products is being temporarily capped at two per cent starting next month instead of a planned 6.3 per cent increase.
"This proposal temporarily caps the inflation adjustment for excise duties on all alcoholic products at 2 per cent for one year only as of April 1, 2023," reads the budget.
- Watch live coverage of the 2023 federal budget from 4 p.m. ET
- Capital Dispatch: Sign up for in-depth political coverage of Parliament Hill
It's a government concession after microbrewers and distillers said the higher excise tax would affect their bottom lines, already hurt by the higher cost of ingredients, manufacturing and other expenses.
Opposition parties had also been clamouring for the move, and passed a motion earlier this month calling on the government to scrap the increase altogether. The motion called the tax increase the largest on alcohol in the last 40 years.
The president of Beer Canada, which represents Canadian brewers, said in a statement he was "grateful" the government is reducing this year's excise tax increase.
"Faced with already very high tax rates, increased operating costs and depressed beer sales volumes, a 6.3% federal beer tax increase this year would have been devastating to brewers, brewery workers, the hospitality and tourism sector and hard-working Canadian consumers," CJ Hélie said in a statement.
"We are appreciative that Minister Freeland’s took action to provide the sector some breathing room to recover."
Alcohol excise duties are automatically indexed to inflation at the start of each fiscal year, hence the planned 6.3 per cent rise this year.
The two per cent cap is just for the 2023-24 fiscal year, the government says. After that, it's possible that inflation will have fallen, meaning the excise tax won't be as punishing.
The government expects to make $100 million in 2023-24 from the excise tax, the documents show.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Maple Leafs fall to Bruins in Game 3, trail series 2-1
Brad Marchand scored twice, including the winner in the third period, and added an assist as the Boston Bruins downed the Toronto Maple Leafs 4-2 to take a 2-1 lead in their first-round playoff series Wednesday
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
New Indigenous loan guarantee program a 'really big deal,' Freeland says at Toronto conference
Canada's Deputy Prime Minister Chrystia Freeland was among the 1,700 delegates attending the two-day First Nations Major Projects Coalition (FNMPC) conference that concluded Tuesday in Toronto.
'Life was not fair to him': Daughter of N.B. man exonerated of murder remembers him as a kind soul
The daughter of a New Brunswick man recently exonerated from murder, is remembering her father as somebody who, despite a wrongful conviction, never became bitter or angry.