State vodka fills budget

State monopoly for alcohol manufacturing and distribution can be introduced in the country. The public chamber of Russia has prepared a new concept of state regulation of the alcohol market. How these innovations can be reflected in the prices and quality of vodka and other heating drinks?

The Russian authorities recognised long time ago that the existing monitoring system controlling turnover of alcoholic production is inefficient. Introduction of the Unified State Automated System some years ago has not justified itself. Therefore an idea about manufacture monopolisation has occurred in heads of government officials. Branch nationalisation should help in struggle with ?alcoholization? of the population, and will also considerably lower number of pirate goods in the market.

As of today volume of the Russian market of strong alcohol, by different estimations, makes from 210 to 240 million decalitres, volume of beer market - about 1200 million decalitres, and 80 million decalitres - low alcohol drinks and cocktails.

According to the results of scientific research, from the beginning the ninetieth more than 3 million inhabitants of Russia have died because of alcohol. In Russia 52 % of all deaths of citizens aged 15 - 54 years are connected with abusing alcohol, whereas a universal indicator makes 4 %. Thus for men this indicator has made 59 %, and for women - 33 %. For age 55-74 years 18 % of deaths are connected with alcohol.

Experts consider that introduction of state monopoly for alcohol turnover will allow to raise tax revenues in one and a half time and to legalise all shadow market of alcoholic production. The truth is that branch nationalisation will lead to a rise in prices for alcoholic drinks. Cost of litre of "white" can grow on 25-40 %.

The head of the Center of researches of the federal and regional markets of alcohol Vadim Drobiz considers that the state is an extremely inefficient proprietor. " Requirement of state monopoly is a political populism without economic calculations, it is a display of economic amateurishness. State monopoly has no relation to antialcoholic campaign. It will not solve the problem of illegal distribution of alcohol and vodka as it does not solve this problem, for example, in Ukraine. All alcohol belongs to the state - the illegal vodka market in Ukraine is larger than in Russia".

Artem Krasnov

sections: Society