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LCBO / The Beer Store

Should the LCBO be deregulated?

  • Total voters
    169
  • Poll closed .
They should of designed a hybrid version of a trillium turning into a cannbis leaf. Cannabis Coalition would've been a better name to make it not sound stale but keeping in mind it is politically run.

There, that took 5 minutes and is ultimately better than what they came up with. I would even do that for half the money.
 
From this link:

Even after Supreme Court ruling, trade barriers still don’t make sense

The Supreme Court of Canada says the provinces have the legal right to restrict trade, but that doesn’t make it any smarter.

...the court ruled unanimously on Thursday that the provinces are well within their rights to enact laws that have the effect (if not the intent) of restricting trade. There is, it said, no “constitutional guarantee of free trade” within Canada.

The case at hand was, so to speak, small beer. Gérard Comeau of Tracadie, N.B., was appealing a $292 fine he received back in 2012 for the offence of bringing 14 cases of beer and three bottles of liquor home from Quebec....
Click to expand...

For reference, from this link:

How much alcohol can I bring from another province?

Here are the allowed amounts of alcohol broken down by province or territory:

Ontario
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24.6 litres of beer.
Quebec
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24.6 litres of beer.
British Columbia
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 25.6 litres of beer.
Yukon
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24.55 litres of beer.
Prince Edward Island
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24.6 litres of beer.
Nova Scotia
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24 litres of beer.
Saskatchewan
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24 litres of beer.
New Brunswick
  • Up to one bottle of spirits;
  • Up to one bottle of wine; and
  • 12 pints of beer.
Newfoundland and Labrador
  • Up to 40 ounces or 1.14 litres of spirits;
  • Up to 40 ounces or 1.14 litres of wine; and
  • Two dozen bottles or cans or nine litres of beer.
Northwest Territories
  • Up to 1.14 litres of spirits;
  • Up to 1.5 litres of wine; and
  • Up to 8.52 litres of beer.
Nunavut
  • Up to 1.14 litres of spirits;
  • Up to 1.14 litres of wine; or
  • Up to 12 x 355 ml cans of beer.
Alberta
  • No limits imposed.
Manitoba
  • No limits imposed.
Keep in mind, the law is constantly changing, and the current trend leans towards removing restrictions.​
 
ticky said:
And how is this enforced exactly over invisible borders?

For the Average Joe, they are never going to get caught doing this.
Click to expand...

Apparently, the cops (the RCMP in this case) just stuck around a Costco in a town just over the provincial border, and noticed 14 cases of beer being loaded in a New Brunswick plated vehicle, and just followed them.
 
ticky said:
And how is this enforced exactly over invisible borders?
Click to expand...

Visit Ottawa, where half the urban area is in Quebec. The SAQ on Promenade du Portage is always full of Ontario civil servants who work in the nearby federal office buildings. The Costco and the deps in Gatineau are also full of Ontarians buying beer. Conversely, the LCBOs in downtown Ottawa are full of people from Gatineau - there are times in the LCBO on Rideau Street where I seem to be the only anglophone in the store (some of the francophones are likely Franco-Ontarians, but not all of them). Strikes or labour disruptions at the LCBO or SAQ aren't the end of the world, because one can just drive to another part of town to stack up on gin.

There is no meaningful way of enforcing the rules, short of watching parking lots and trying to make an example of the occasional customer. But I don't think that is common practice.
 
They are essentially unenforceable. Whenever I drive through Quebec I tend to stop and buy a lot of beer, I can tell you that much. The only way to catch someone is to randomly pull people over right at the border and check what is in their trunks. Even then, people can just kindly refuse a search and the cops are left SOL.
 
W. K. Lis said:
Apparently, the cops (the RCMP in this case) just stuck around a Costco in a town just over the provincial border, and noticed 14 cases of beer being loaded in a New Brunswick plated vehicle, and just followed them.
Click to expand...

A Costco? There aren't any Costco stores between Levis, Quebec (Quebec City area) and Fredericton (I was surprised that Fredericton has a Costco). This individual was making his beer runs a regular occurrence and there was probably reason why this particular man was pulled over. I have family in Ottawa that go on beer runs to the Costco in Gatineau, but it's for personal consumption, and nobody has heard of anyone pulled over on the Macdonald-Cartier Bridge.

Usually when I go to the States, I bring some beer back, but not a lot (if it's a day trip, not more than 6-8 bottles or cans), and usually something that's hard to get in Ontario. I always declare it and never had to pull over to pay tax.

All that said, I do not agree with this ruling, but I also see the bigger issues a favourable ruling would cause not related to alcohol related trade.
 
W. K. Lis said:
From this link:

Even after Supreme Court ruling, trade barriers still don’t make sense

The Supreme Court of Canada says the provinces have the legal right to restrict trade, but that doesn’t make it any smarter.



For reference, from this link:

How much alcohol can I bring from another province?

Here are the allowed amounts of alcohol broken down by province or territory:

Ontario
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24.6 litres of beer.
Quebec
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24.6 litres of beer.
British Columbia
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 25.6 litres of beer.
Yukon
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24.55 litres of beer.
Prince Edward Island
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24.6 litres of beer.
Nova Scotia
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24 litres of beer.
Saskatchewan
  • Up to three litres of spirits;
  • Up to nine litres of wine; and
  • 24 litres of beer.
New Brunswick
  • Up to one bottle of spirits;
  • Up to one bottle of wine; and
  • 12 pints of beer.
Newfoundland and Labrador
  • Up to 40 ounces or 1.14 litres of spirits;
  • Up to 40 ounces or 1.14 litres of wine; and
  • Two dozen bottles or cans or nine litres of beer.
Northwest Territories
  • Up to 1.14 litres of spirits;
  • Up to 1.5 litres of wine; and
  • Up to 8.52 litres of beer.
Nunavut
  • Up to 1.14 litres of spirits;
  • Up to 1.14 litres of wine; or
  • Up to 12 x 355 ml cans of beer.
Alberta
  • No limits imposed.
Manitoba
  • No limits imposed.
Keep in mind, the law is constantly changing, and the current trend leans towards removing restrictions.​
Click to expand...

Worth noting as people compare the Ontario and NB numbers in terms of what's allowed.

Between Ontario and Quebec you are 'allowed' to take 2 'two-fours' of tall cans between provinces.

And one case of wine.

That really covers most people's needs most of the time.

New Brunswick allows 1 BOTTLE of wine (as opposed to one case); and if you translate your 12 pints into tall cans, they don't even allow for a single 'two-four' to go across.

Irrespective of active enforcement those are beyond silly restrictions; silly enough to perhaps make enforcement more attractive to NB police.
 
I'm hoping Premier Ford shuts down the Beer Store's monopoly. I've yet to see a Beer Store location downtown that isn't a blight on its community. It's no surprise that within a km circle around downtown east there are at least three Beer Stores, River St., Parliament St, and Gerrard St., each with its Remora-like vagrants and beggars out front and pissing nearby. I'd like the bottles and cans to be returned still - when I lived in Fredericton there were depots solely for such returns. Let me buy beer wherever I want, if Drugstores can sell smokes, why not booze?

As for the LCBO, I'm torn.... their stores are much nicer than the Beer Store, and they use their buying power to get nice assortments of products. But why not keep the LCBO as the province's buyer of booze, and then they can distribute it to all retailers across the province?
 
Admiral Beez said:
I'm hoping Premier Ford shuts down the Beer Store's monopoly. I've yet to see a Beer Store location downtown that isn't a blight on its community. It's no surprise that within a km circle around downtown east there are at least three Beer Stores, River St., Parliament St, and Gerrard St., each with its Remora-like vagrants and beggars out front and pissing nearby. I'd like the bottles and cans to be returned still - when I lived in Fredericton there were depots solely for such returns. Let me buy beer wherever I want, if Drugstores can sell smokes, why not booze?

As for the LCBO, I'm torn.... their stores are much nicer than the Beer Store, and they use their buying power to get nice assortments of products. But why not keep the LCBO as the province's buyer of booze, and then they can distribute it to all retailers across the province?
Click to expand...
I always thought of the same regarding alcohol distribution - keep the LCBO the only wholesale supplier, but sales can be liberalized through any store that applies for the right permit. They just have to source their booze from the LCBO.

If convenience stores can be trusted to prevent children from buying cigarettes (a much more addictive and dangerous substance) then they can be trusted to sell alcohol or even cannabis. Enough of this nanny stateism.
 
I'll would love to get my beer at Costco or my corner variety store.

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From link.
 
Filip said:
If convenience stores can be trusted to prevent children from buying cigarettes (a much more addictive and dangerous substance) then they can be trusted to sell alcohol or even cannabis. Enough of this nanny stateism.
Click to expand...
Not just convenience stores. Let micro breweries deliver straight to their customers, uber'drinks?
 
I hope Doug will realize how much of a money maker the LCBO is, and will use that as a reason to maintain the status quo for liquor (non-beer) sales.
 
Yeah it would be good if the PC's can get rid of that foreign-owned monopoly in Ontario known as The Beer Store, and open up to a competitive market, like they do in the rest of the modern world. It would definitely help out our local craft breweries that's for sure.

Toronto could sure do with a some higher-end beer stores like you see in NYC, that sell only craft and import beers. You want Molson or Budweiser swill? Go buy that at your local convenience store or grocery store.
 
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