Wine should flow across provincial borders: MP

An Okanagan Conservative MP hopes to change a prohibition-era law that makes it illegal to move alcohol across provincial borders.

The Importation of Intoxicating Liquors Act dates back to 1928 and prohibits out-of-province tourists from taking home their favourite bottle of B.C. wine, said Ron Cannan, whose represents the riding of Kelowna-Lake Country.

The law also makes it illegal for wineries to ship their products directly to customers outside B.C.

'It can take up to 120 days to get the bottle shipped from one province to the next.' —B.C. MP Ron Cannan

"[If] somebody from Alberta visits the Okanagan Valley and buys a bottle or two, puts it in their car and drives back to their home in Alberta, they've broken the law," Cannan told CBC News.

Cannan said that has hurt wineries in his region.

"It's just one of those laws on the book that are archaic and we need to [change it]," he said. "It's the right thing to do."

Months-long process

Vintners also want to sell their products online without going through the bureaucracy of the provincial liquor board, which delays delivery for months.

"It can take up to 120 days to get the bottle shipped from one province to the next," Cannan said. "We want to allow Canadians to purchase wines from across the country, and remove these intra-provincial trade barriers. We're, after all, a free-trading nation."

Cannan's bill would amend the act and give individuals exemptions, up to a certain amount.

He said the proposed legislation is being met with some resistance by provincial liquor boards who've told him they stand to lose money from the change.

Federal private members bills rarely make it all the way through the legislative process and become law, but often can serve to highlight needed policy changes.