More affordable booze

[French Castanut]

Why does Quebec have the privilege to buy 24 beers for $21.99 while collecting equalization pmts from BC, and we in BC pay our beer over $45 to collect tax money that will be sent to Quebec?

With the conservatives promise to have beer in every corner store, it would be nice to have it at a more reasonable price too. Do you agree?

[fluffy]

Why does Quebec have the privilege to buy 24 beers for $21.99 while collecting equalization pmts from BC, and we in BC pay our beer over $45 to collect tax money that will be sent to Quebec?

Excellent question.

With the conservatives promise to have beer in every corner store, it would be nice to have it at a more reasonable price too. Do you agree?

I find it hard to support increasing the availability of alcohol when we're busy cutting back on programs that deal with the problems it causes.

[Hassel99]

What i don't understand is why the government is in the liquor selling business in BC and competing against free enterprise. Now that they have opened the market up to private sales i don't see why the BCLS is still operating.

[French Castanut]

In Quebec, all the beer & some wines called "grocery store wines" are free market, available at EVERY grocery & corner stores. There's a minimum price set by the govt, which is right now I think $21.99 for 24 beer. On top of that price you pay consignation ($2.40) + 15% sale tax. As for consignation, the law is that any merchant charging it must take it back, which is nice cuz when youre done drinking and ready to buy new beer, you bring back the empty case at the store and they give you back your money ($2.40$)

That system works extremely well.

As for the govt liquor store, called SAQ, they have the exclusive privilege to seel the wine (at astronomic rip off price LOL), the hard alcool (like vodka) & fancy beers (like smirnoff ice). In that case I'd say this is a huge spending with overpaid unionized employees and stores wasting money on useless things.

[French Castanut]

Right now at Couche-Tard (they have hundreds of corner store in the province), you can buy beer $26.99 and you get a free bag of chips! At the same time, Maxi (same as Superstore), sell the same beer $29.99 no free chips. That's how free market works. How much that case of beer costs in BC?