Poland’s lower house has backed a bill to extend a ban on alcohol advertising and introduce curbs on off-premise sales in the country.
The Sejm, Poland’s lower house, overwhelmingly voted in favour of the proposed legislation, which now moves to the country’s upper house, the Senate.
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The bill broadens an existing ban on the advertising of alcohol to beer, a move criticised by local beer-industry trade association Browary Polskie.
Under the plans, the off-premise sales of alcohol will be banned between 10pm and 6am. Local authorities will have the option of applying to extend the ban from 9pm to 9am. Some cities, including Warsaw, had already introduced restrictions.
The serving of alcohol in on-trade outlets is exempt from the proposed legislation.
In the Sejm, 400 MPs voted in favour of the bill, 29 voted against and four MPs abstained.
The legislation, which was drawn up by Poland’s Lewica party, also included curbs on promotions and an increase in licencing fees.
In a brief statement on X, Browary Polskie said the ban on beer advertising was “a measure of questionable merit that comes at too high a price”.
“As an industry, we do not dispute the need to combat addiction and excessive alcohol consumption. However, the proposed regulations not only fail to serve this purpose but actually hinder the development of products that offer millions of Polish consumers an alternative to alcohol,” the trade association said.
“We question the choice of measures and call for a thorough analysis of the actual impact – not only on the brewing industry but also on the entire economy and on consumers – particularly regarding the proposed ban on advertising beer and non-alcoholic beer.”
The Senate will now vote on the bill. Should the Senate pass the legislation, it will then move to Poland’s President, Karol Nawrocki, to sign.
In a post on X, Lewica said the Sejm had “said stop to the alcohol lobby” and added: “For years, alcohol has been one of the most accessible products. You can buy it at any time of day or night, in astronomical quantities that are promoted everywhere – on TV, the internet, or billboards. Lewica’s stance is clear: no to profits over health. Yes to listening to the voices of Polish women and men instead of the alcohol lobby.”
Joanna Wicha, the Lewica MP who put forward the bill, said in her own X post: “As the proposer, this is very important to me. Today’s decision shows that on fundamental issues, we can sometimes manage to be united.”
