Many pubs in Derbyshire are small, family-run businesses, and are not only the social heart of their communities, often providing a useful place for the community to come together. They also provide jobs, attract visitors and support the British brewing industry.
The revenues raised from alcohol duty make an important contribution to tackling Britain’s deficit. However, by making difficult choices elsewhere, the Government decided to make a targeted reduction in beer duty and abolished the beer duty escalator that was inherited from the previous Labour government at Budget 2013. This provides the greatest benefit to pubs as 68 per cent of the alcohol sold in pubs is beer.
For the third year in a row, the tax on a typical pint of beer has been cut by 1p. This means that an average pint of beer is 9p cheaper than it would have been under Labour’s plans when they were in power. The duty on spirits and on cider has also been cut by 2 per cent as I know many had campaigned for, while the duty on wine will be frozen. Tax changes are announced by the Chancellor at the time of the Budget but the Treasury keeps all taxes under constant review, including alcohol duty.
By Patrick McLoughlin on March 08, 2016