UK Wine Industry
(1 day, 10 hours ago)
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Esther McVey (in the Chair)
I will call Tristan Osborne to move the motion and I will then call the Minister to respond. I remind other Members that they can make a speech only with the prior permission of the Member in charge of the debate and the Minister. As is the convention for 30-minute debates, there will not be an opportunity for the Member in charge to wind up.
Tristan Osborne (Chatham and Aylesford) (Lab)
I beg to move,
That this House has considered the UK wine industry.
It is a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship, Ms McVey. I thank all the Members who are here. As we are running half an hour late—I appreciate your management of the Divisions earlier, Ms McVey—if Members are here for the bins, that debate will be in half an hour. I say that as a courtesy.
I am grateful for the opportunity to open the debate on the UK wine industry—a personal passion—to discuss how can we build on a sector that already has strong roots in the community I serve and across the country. I notice we have some winegrowers and producers in the Public Gallery.
I have a natural bias, given my Kent heritage and my constituency being home to many established vineyards and growers. The north Kent chalk escarpment has a number of leading brands, including Chapel Down, with its famous Kit’s Coty sparkling white wine and Bacchus smooth white; Balfour, a grape wine producer in the weald; and Gusbourne—all established and high-quality producers. This is not just about high-quality producers, however, but the plethora of start-up and established small businesses growing across our country, not just in Kent but in Wales, Scotland and Northern Ireland.
The industry is a success story that we should celebrate. It is represented by extremely strong voices from the growers, alongside passionate advocates GB Wines, who have supported me, and the Wine and Spirit Trade Association. Coupled with producers and growers, they are strong advocates, but they are a small voice and need to be heard more loudly. We are discussing a genuinely dynamic and growing part of our rural economy. Our food and drink culture is part of our natural heritage and national story that we should celebrate.
The UK wine sector has moved from being a curiosity 20 to 30 years ago to a serious contender in the space of a single generation. It deserves serious attention from Government. For those who do not know, the 2025 harvest has been described by growers as a vintage of outstanding quality. After the driest summer on record, grapes ripened fully and harvest began three weeks earlier than in 2024. Estimates suggest production of around 15 million to 16 million bottles, potentially the second largest harvest ever in UK history. That demonstrates that, even within the constraints of the UK’s cool climate, British growers are capable of consistently producing high-quality wine at a commercial scale, through expertise, innovation and careful vineyard management.
Freddie van Mierlo (Henley and Thame) (LD)
Will the hon. Member join me in welcoming Hendred Vineyard to Westminster today, which has been exhibiting the best it has to offer at the “Taste of Oxfordshire” event? Does he agree that English sparkling wine is now better than champagne? Will he encourage MPs to purchase English sparkling wine rather than champagne?
Tristan Osborne
I went to the Oxfordshire event today and tried some of the wine, which is of outstanding quality from an established producer of 50 years; long may that success continue. The hon. Member is correct that we have award-winning sparkling wines, and across Europe we are now seen as a choice region for many champagne producers.
That sustained growth is being seen over the long term as well. In 2024, there were 1,030 vineyards in the UK— 87 more than the year before—occupying 4,000 hectares under vine. That is a 123% increase over a decade and production is now trending upward too, with 21.6 million bottles produced in 2023.
Alex Mayer (Dunstable and Leighton Buzzard) (Lab)
My hon. Friend talks about bottles, but they are not the only way of packaging up wine. In my constituency, the innovative packaging company ecoSIP makes single serve wine portions but, bizarrely, regulations mean that they cannot sell them in 125 ml containers. Does my hon. Friend think that is a strange anomaly, and would the Minister care to comment on it later?
Tristan Osborne
Indeed, different ways of distributing wine have been established in this country by Tetra Pak and others. There are innovations that we need to consider and there are lessons to be learned from other European nations.
Demand is rising in whatever form. Sales of domestic wine increased by 10% in 2023, with sparkling wine sales up 187% since 2018. This is a real success story of our rural landscape.
Sarah Dyke (Glastonbury and Somerton) (LD)
I thank the hon. Member for securing this important debate. Somerset is more often known for its cider production, but I have a brilliant, multi-award winning winemaker, Smith & Evans, based in Aller on the Somerset levels. As he rightly points out, sales of UK wine are increasing, but there are difficulties, such as the tax thresholds that are hampering growers’ innovation. Does he agree that the Government must justify the cumulative cost burden of extended producer responsibility for glass packaging alongside those rising costs?
Tristan Osborne
Absolutely, there are challenges in the industry and I will raise a number of them in a moment, but first I want to offer an overview of the success of the sector. There are a lot of hard-working wine growers and merchants. Despite some of the challenges, the industry is already showing real success and we need to support it.
British wine is gaining recognition not just in this country but across the world. Japan is now a key market and the United States, Hong Kong, South Korea and Denmark are all beginning to respect our wines and see them as a go-to product choice. The export market is expanding at pace and, with support, this could be a real positive multiplier in our rural communities, much maligned and struggling in many cases. This is a growth industry that could sustain our rural economy and grow it in a more promising way. Many practices that wine producers engage with are inherently sustainable and support the local community, both directly in terms of wine producing, but also in spin-offs such as restaurants and wine tourism.
Alison Bennett (Mid Sussex) (LD)
I know the hon. Member trained as a teacher. Plumpton college educates many students in Mid Sussex and last year, it pledged £500,000 of fully funded training in the wine sector. Does he agree that to grow the wine industry, the Government also need to support skill development in rural economies and communities?
Tristan Osborne
I agree 100% that we do need to support more agricultural colleges. Clearly, individual courses will need to have throughput with apprenticeships into wine producers. There are not many of those and they are, at present, quite contained. I absolutely agree that, as the industry grows, we need to encourage skills development in that space.
I have other queries similar to the hon. Lady’s, and some of these policy interventions would not be expensive for the Government. On support for wine tourism, apparently 19% of our domestic wine is sold directly to visitors and local customers at the cellar door. These are not just transactions; they are experiences that anchor vineyards in their communities, create hospitality jobs and bring people into rural areas. A carefully designed relief on duty for on-site sales would not distort the market and threaten revenues but empower producers to grow sustainably. If we can offer small-scale support to the sector at this stage of the industry’s growth, we can realise and return greater revenues later.
We also need to safeguard what British wine actually means. Consumers deserve clarity, and our producers deserve protection. Wine labelled as “English”, “British” or “UK-made” should genuinely be made from 100% British grapes, and labelling reforms should enhance transparency, rather than create loopholes. At the same time, we need to beware of regulatory changes that could undermine domestic sparkling producers, and we should instead allow domestic producers the opportunity to make a protected geographical indication category for English prosecco, for example. Adding to that, it is vital that we do not dilute internationally recognised standards.
As has been mentioned, we of course need to support education, research and development, and the promotion of skills. Much of the grant funding that once supported equipment, education and research has fallen away over the years. In my view, if we are serious about growing a high-value rural industry, which is already showing this growth, strategic investment in training, research and overseas marketing is not a luxury; it is a requirement to oversee growth. We know that we operate in a global market, and competing wine nations, such as France and others close to us in Europe, are already providing this backing to their industries. We need to be in this space to ensure that our producers are competitive on a level playing field.
On exports more broadly, no new wine region has succeeded internationally without some initial state backing. If we want English wine on shelves in Tokyo, New York and Copenhagen, the Government must be a partner, which is why supporting wine producers at expo conferences and trade fairs is absolutely critical. Small amounts of money to support advertising in those locations could generate significant throughput and expansion in exports.
My colleagues are right to mention taxation, and we need to be open to considering a level playing field. When it comes to small cider and beer production in this country, tax relief is offered at the cellar door, and I believe that the Government could also consider doing that for small wine producers. I understand that a statutory review of the system is due in August, and I urge the Minister to lobby her colleagues in the Treasury, as tricky as that might be, to look at both the level and methodology of wine duty to ensure that it supports, rather than constrains, this growing sector. I understand that the challenges with the Treasury might be significant, but it is nevertheless worth me articulating that.
On packaging policy, there are of course real challenges. Under extended producer responsibility, the fee for glass is around eight times higher than in other comparable European schemes. Although I am an advocate for our environment, as well as for the sustainability of many workplaces, we know that the wine industry relies on glass as a premium product and this problematic double-charging has an impact on communities. Can EPR fees be reviewed in the light of the size or turnover of a company, or the scale of its operation? Although I accept the premise of extended producer responsibility, perhaps there are some areas that could be looked at.
Land use planning must also recognise the unique nature of vineyards. As has been mentioned, they are not simply farms but rural assets—they are agricultural enterprises that not only produce high-value crops but act as tourist destinations, attracting visitors to local economies. Balfour, which is a Kent-based winery that I have had the pleasure of visiting, now offers a bespoke restaurant and hotel. That is now standard in many wineries, and some are aligned with pubs and other hospitality venues. Tasting rooms, restaurants and event venues are also linked to many of these producers as they diversify their businesses. They are not just environmental stewards, maintaining landscapes and biodiversity; they are indigenous parts of our communities. As we have seen in other European nations, we should be celebrating and talking about that.
As we look ahead, the UK wine industry will be a vibrant part of our national story, and it is one that we can absolutely sell to the world. I believe that this vision is aligned with our Government’s strategy to create a more dynamic rural economy and to support the economies of the future—as our climate changes, this space is only going to grow. I believe that we can build those jobs and pride, while delivering world-class British produce in our communities.
Lastly, outside of Government, supermarkets and distributors have a part to play. If we visit France and go down a wine aisle, we see that the French actively celebrate their product and market it with a logo, and they encourage their people to purchase it. I believe that our supermarkets should have that responsibility as well, and we can encourage them to market English wines in a similar way. Domestic demand would dramatically increase if there was consumer access to the wines that we produce—I say that to restaurants as well.
The industry is now going through a phase where there is movement and tumult as new wineries open and close, but in 20 years’ time the sector will be double or triple the size it is today. The Government should enable that as much as possible and ensure that our rural economies benefit, so we get the pleasure of tasting the best wine in the world.
The Minister for Food Security and Rural Affairs (Dame Angela Eagle)
It is a pleasure to serve with you in the Chair, Ms McVey. I congratulate my hon. Friend the Member for Chatham and Aylesford (Tristan Osborne) on securing the debate and on his work in championing the UK’s growing wine industry. It is particularly good that he has managed to get it in dry January.
Dame Angela Eagle
Yes, nearly over. The UK has always been a major trade hub for wine. We are the world’s second largest importer of wine by value and volume, bringing in an estimated 1.7 billion bottles every year. The UK is also the 11th largest exporter of wine, so it is very much a two-way trade.
The scale and connectivity matter. The UK’s role as a global hub anchors expertise and investment across bottling, logistics, retail and export, and increasingly, as we have heard from my hon. Friend today, in viticulture. Our domestic wines have earned a reputation for exceptional quality, as demonstrated by the nine gold medals awarded to English wines at the 2025 International Wine and Spirit Competition in London. Nyetimber’s head winemaker, Cherie Spriggs, was named sparkling winemaker of the year for a second time, which is an exceptional achievement. She was the first person outside Champagne to win the award, thereby giving some credence to my hon. Friend’s claim that the only champagne to drink at the moment, even if we cannot call it that, is English sparkling wine.
Such achievements show the quality that British producers can attain when talent, innovation and investment come together and are applied to British viticulture. Across the country at fantastic vineyards such as Chapel Down’s Kit’s Coty in the constituency of my hon. Friend, the production of award-winning wines is translating into good jobs, as he pointed out, as well as tourism growth and renewed confidence in local, often rural, economies. We recognise the challenges the industry faces: a tougher trading environment, rising costs and tariffs. Yet through working in partnership with the industry, we intend to help it seize opportunities and ensure growth is felt by farmers and communities alike.
Exports of domestic wines are gaining real momentum. English and Welsh wines now ship to 45 countries, with exports more than doubling their share of total sales from 2021 to 2024. The 16 agrifood attachés from the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs play a key role in this success by promoting UK wine, removing market access barriers and helping businesses navigate consumer demand and import procedures. The Government are supporting WineGB to boost the global profile of English and Welsh sparkling wine at Wine Paris in February. We want to ensure that British producers have a strong, confident presence in key global markets.
Our trade deals have enabled greater access to international markets for UK wines, whether through simplified customs procedures under our recently announced free trade agreement with the Republic of Korea or the approval of a greater range of winemaking practices for exports to Australia and New Zealand. The Government are working to make it easier and less costly for UK wine producers to do business abroad.
The success story of the UK wine sector does not start overseas; it begins at home. Industry forecasts suggest that the retail value of English and Welsh wines could reach £1 billion by 2040, but I wonder whether we can get there faster. With more than 1,100 vineyards, and production exceeding 10 million bottles, viticulture is one of the fastest-growing agricultural sectors in the country, and the Government are committed to supporting that growth. Through the farming innovation programme, we have committed at least £200 million through to 2030 to support viticulture. That will help producers invest, innovate and plan with confidence.
On whether we can change the regulations on single-serve wine portions, there has not yet been a decision on reforms, but we are keen to engage on ideas about innovation, including on that issue. I ask my hon. Friend to please keep in touch with me and the Department on that innovation and others so that we can see whether it is worth our while changing regulations that may have become out of date.
Wine tourism is a vital part of the success, as my hon. Friend pointed out. In 2023, about 1.5 million visits were made to vineyards and wineries, and tourism accounted for roughly a quarter of income for many estates. This is about jobs, economic opportunity and resilient rural economies. The Government are committed to supporting that vision, including by backing regional identity initiatives. Our ongoing efforts will ensure that regions gain the recognition that they deserve, both at home and abroad.
My hon. Friend mentioned cellar door relief. I would certainly welcome any data that he and the industry can provide me with so that we can see how we might deal with that. We have to get evidence before we can make changes to the way that such relief is given. If evidence exists out there, I strongly suggest that my hon. Friend gets in touch with the wine-growing bodies so that they can present it to us and we can consider it.
My hon. Friend mentioned packaging reforms. The Government are committed to moving towards a circular economy that delivers sustainable growth and reduces waste. Our collection and packaging reforms, including extended producer responsibility and the deposit return scheme, are designed to drive investment in modern recycling infrastructure. Extended producer responsibility is already used successfully across more than 30 countries and is a proven way to increase reusable packaging in the market and improve long-term environmental issues. I understand my hon. Friend’s point, but we have to move forward and try to get to a place where we can recycle much more packaging to ensure it does not go to landfill. The Government recognise the pressures that alcohol producers face, and we want to assist in any way we can.
The Government committed to upskilling the workforce, and we are working closely with Skills England and the Department for Education on the growth and skills levy, which includes apprenticeships. If my hon. Friend wants to convene the industry to talk about how that might be applied with respect to viticulture, I am more than happy to hear what he has to say when he has done that work.
The growth of the UK wine industry is impressive, but we are only just beginning to realise its full potential. It is about far more than bottles sold or medals won, although they are very important and we celebrate them; it is about skilled jobs, thriving rural economies and the confidence that comes when communities seek growth and opportunity on their doorstep. This Labour Government believe in backing British industry, supporting working people and building an economy that works for every part of the country. That is why, as a Minister, I am committed to working closely with the sector to drive innovation, expand exports and ensure that rural communities across the UK fully share the benefits of this success story.
Question put and agreed to.