Izabela Leszczyna has been the Minister of Health for a long time time announces that it will want to push through the introduction of a sales ban alcohol at gas stations from 10 p.m. to 6 a.m. The Ministry of Health recently informed usthat “programming team wash government” is working on this issue. “As always, other ministries contribute their comments and proposals, this is part of the law-making process in Poland,” the ministry wrote. The Minister of Health said on Tuesday in TVN24that discussions on the project are still ongoing because “he has some tension with his government colleagues” regarding the ban on the sale of alcohol at gas stations.
Ban on night sales of alcohol at stations? The fuel industry says “no”
– I don't want to use the word that someone is lobbying. We have ministers who are responsible for the economy. They represent the interests of entrepreneurs, and this is always a limitation of a certain business, said Izabela Leszczyna. Meanwhile, in connection with the possible introduction of a ban on night sales of alcohol at gas stations, they spoke out Polish Organization of Petroleum Industry and Trade (POPiHN) and Polish Chamber of Liquid Fuels (PIPP). Both organizations strongly oppose this and in an extensive statement they list a number of arguments against the night prohibition. Among them, there are also large-scale ones, such as a possible increase in fuel prices at gas stations and an increase inflation. In addition, representatives of the fuel industry refer to European Union law.
POPiHN and PIPP: The ban is discrimination against the fuel industry
Both organizations emphasize that it is necessary to fight the plague of drunk drivers, but according to POPiHN and PIPP, the night prohibition at gas stations “will not improve road safety or reduce the scale of alcohol problems in Poland.” The organizations believe that such solutions “under the guise of combating alcohol problems, lead to obvious and unjustified discrimination of the fuel industry compared to other alcohol distribution channels in Poland” and violate the basic rights of entrepreneurs. According to representatives of the fuel industry, the ban on selling alcohol at night only at gas stations will have a negligible impact on reducing the physical availability of alcohol.
POPiHN and PIPP remind that in Poland alcohol is sold in approx. 5.5 thousand gas station. Meanwhile, according to data from the National Center for Addiction Prevention, there were nearly 121,000 outlets selling alcoholic beverages in Poland at the end of 2022. “This means that after the introduction of the night prohibition only at gas stations, consumers will still have the opportunity to buy alcohol in over 100,000 other places,” we read in the statement.
Will the ban on the sale of alcohol lead to “an increase in fuel prices and inflation”?
The industry also emphasizes that gas stations have an equally small share in the quantity and value of alcohol sold. According to POPiHN data for the first quarter of 2024, sales of alcoholic beverages at gas stations “are only 2.2% of the volume and 2.6% of the value of total sales of alcoholic beverages.” The statement indicates that limiting gas stations' income from non-fuel offers “may lead to an increase in fuel prices and inflation.” According to representatives of the fuel industry, such a reduction in income may lead to the need to compensate for it by increasing fuel prices. “The government's actions should be based on positive experiences from other countries, and not succumb to populism or short-term social emotions caused by media interest,” we read.
The fuel industry points to the European Union. And not only that
Moreover, POPiHN and PIPP argue that the introduction of a night prohibition only at gas stations is inconsistent with EU law – in particular the principle of equal treatment and freedom of establishment, and may be considered state aid for entrepreneurs selling alcohol outside gas stations. “Any restriction on the freedom to conduct a business activity should be consistent with European Union law. Thus, under Articles 56 and 49 TFEU, although Member States may introduce restrictions on these freedoms, they must do so in a proportionate manner,” says the fuel industry. In her opinion, the proposal to introduce a night prohibition at gas stations is excessive, because local governments are already able to introduce local bans on the sale of alcohol at night. Such bans apply, for example, in Kraków, Poznań and Puławy. “There is therefore no need to introduce a nationwide ban – it should apply where the availability of alcohol at night is actually a problem,” say POPiHN and PIPP.