More than half, or 56 per cent, consider the current alcohol policy restrictions to be appropriate in Finland. There has been no change in views during the year, as the share in last year’s survey was 57 per cent. Support for alcohol policy restrictions has been growing since 2015 when only 38 per cent of respondents considered the restrictions at the time appropriate.
“The population’s opinions are largely unchanged, and there have been no major changes from last year. This is partly because this survey focuses on retail regulation policy, and the restrictions on alcohol sales during the Korona era have largely affected the on-trade side,” says Thomas Karlsson, lead expert at THL.
Gender separates the opinions of the population. Men are the most liberal, with 37 per cent of men wanting a looser alcohol policy – the corresponding figure for women is 17 per cent.
Most views share where wine could be bought; half (50%) think it should be purchased from grocery stores. This was already the result of last year’s survey. Only 26 per cent of the population would like wines in grocery stores if spirits came to the shops alongside the wines. A clear majority of respondents (86%) would consider the sale of spirits in the future to be Alko’s exclusive right.
The data are from a survey conducted in January 2021. Opinion polls measuring alcohol policy opinions have been undertaken since 1984.
Source: THL