Beery Duty campaign - February 2021
A number of constituents have contacted me as part of a campaign raising the vital issue of beer duty and support for breweries and pubs.
I have always been a strong supporter of helping our brewers and pub and hospitality industry by consistently lobbying the government to secure consecutive freezes in beer duty. Back in July, I was delighted to receive a special award from the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA), in recognition of my support for the Long Live the Local campaign and helping to secure consecutive freezes in beer duty.
I welcomed support for pubs and breweries in the 2020 budget to help mitigate the financial impacts of the coronavirus. Planned tax rises on beer and spirits were scrapped, as part of a freezing on duty across all alcoholic drinks. The budget marked only the second time that has happened in 20 years. Also, the business rate discount for small pubs - those with a rateable value of less than £100,000 - increased from £1,000 to £5,000. The British Beer and Pub Association
Said the measures would save pub-goers £80m and safeguard 2,000 jobs.
In addition, there has been a raft of measures to support pubs and small businesses during the pandemic, such as small business grants, the Eat Out to Help scheme, and reducing VAT in the hospitality sector from 20% to 5%.
Regarding the coming Budget, the Chancellor will have tough decisions to make to continue to support all parts of our country, our economy, our NHS and other services as we look to recover from the pandemic. I will continue to press him to do all he can to support pubs and the wider hospitality industry as part of his work.
