Changes to Finland’s alcohol laws will permit online sales, home delivery and international sales of alcoholic beverages, as well as more online marketing of spirits.
The Finnish Parliament has voted in favour of amending the Alcohol Act to allow home delivery as well as online and cross-border sales of alcoholic beverages.
Tuesday’s vote passed easily, even though one of the four governing parties, the Christian Democrats, opposed it.
The new legislation will also allow state Alko shops to open on Sunday, while spirits may be marketed more freely online.
Here are the three biggest changes:
1. Retail stores may deliver directly to the customer
Grocery stores may deliver alcoholic beverages with an alcohol content of up to eight percent directly to the customer. Only Alko will be allowed to deliver stronger drinks.
Orders may be delivered to a home or pickup point between 9am and 9pm. The recipient must prove their age. The person who made the order must be present at the time of receipt and must not be heavily intoxicated.
2. Some Alko shops will open on Sundays
Alko stores’ opening hours will change as of 4 July. The state-owned retailer will introduce extended opening hours on Saturday evenings, while 35 stores will also be open on Sundays.
Extended opening hours will be introduced in the busiest stores, Alko says.
3. International orders allowed too
Consumers in Finland will now be able to order home delivery of beverages with an alcohol content of up to 80 percent from online stores in other European Economic Area countries.
Decades of debate
The vote concludes a long process of political wrangling and some 20 years of debate. The amendment was ratified by a margin of 98–77, with MPs from the Christian Democrats among the nays.
Voting for the changes were MPs from the other governing parties: the National Coalition Party, the Finns Party and the Swedish People’s Party.
The bill was also backed by three opposition MPs, two from the Greens and one from Movement Now.
The historic changes come as official statistics show alcohol consumption dropping to 1970s levels.
Yle News journalist Ronan Browne explains more.
