Parliamentarian and chairman of the Christian Democrats, Bjarne Kallis, wants to institute a traveller's tax on all ships that ply the route back and forth to Estonia.
Speaking at a party summer function on Saturday, he said that the quick one-day trips should be taxed to compensate for the cheap alcohol that many people go there to stock up on.
He added that taxing travellers on the boats would be a lesser evil than reducing the domestic tax on alcohol and tobacco, as this would be a source of income for the government.
Kallis believes this would help make sure that health and social problems related to alcohol consumption won't rise, especially when Estonia joins the EU next spring. He justifies levying a tax on all passengers, even if they don’t buy alcohol, because the cost of addressing the health and social problems is also passed on to all Finnish taxpayers.
Kallis: Gov't Lacks Hard Facts
Kallis says that the government has been lax in investigating how exactly Estonia’s EU membership will affect the Finnish economy, but has instead relied on guesswork and preconceived notions.
For example, he accused Finance Minister Antti Kalliomäki of being vague when he said that other methods would be used if tax cuts don’t bring about desired results.
“The government should openly consider all the possible courses of action, and quit hinting at having a back-up plan up its sleeve,” he said.
YLE24