Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what recent assessment she has made of the cumulative impact of changes to (a) business rates and (b) employer National Insurance contributions on the financial viability of (i) pubs and (ii) breweries.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
From 2026-27, we intend to introduce permanently lower tax rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties with rateable values below £500,000. This permanent tax cut will ensure that eligible RHL businesses benefit from much-needed certainty and support.
Eligibility for the new RHL multipliers is intended to broadly reflect the scope of the existing RHL relief scheme, and will be set out in legislation later this year.
Until these new tax rates are introduced, in 2025-26, RHL businesses will receive a 40 per cent relief on their eligible properties up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business. Under the previous Government, RHL relief was due to end entirely in April 2025. By extending the relief, the Government has saved the average pub, with a ratable value of £16,800, over £3,300.
Tax policy and legislation is not subject to the Better Regulation Framework Guidance, which requires an Impact Assessment to accompany policy decisions. Nevertheless, when the new multipliers are set at Budget 2025, HM Treasury intends to publish analysis of the effects of the new multiplier arrangements.
Regarding National Insurance contributions, a Tax Information and Impact Note (TIIN) was published alongside the introduction of the Bill containing the changes to employer NICs. The TIIN sets out the impact of the policy on the Exchequer, the economic impacts of the policy, and the impacts on individuals, businesses, and civil society organisations, as well as an overview of the equality impacts.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to consult representatives from the (a) beer and (b) pub sectors ahead of the next Budget.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Pubs and brewers make a significant contribution to our economy and society, including through supporting jobs, and this is recognised in the tax system.
According to the Office for National Statistics' 2023 Business Register and Employment Survey, there were 21,000 people employed in the manufacture of beer and 474,000 people employed in public houses and bars across Great Britain.
The alcohol duty system supports pubs and hospitality businesses through Draught Relief, which ensures eligible products served on draught pay less duty. At Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced a duty cut on qualifying draught products – approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This is the equivalent to a 1p reduction on a typical pint.
The Chancellor has also confirmed her intention to permanently lower business rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties, including pubs, with rateable values below £500,000 from April 2026. This will help protect the jobs supported by the pub sector.
There is significant variation in alcohol taxation policy amongst European countries. The World Health Organization recently published a comparison of alcohol taxes across the WHO European Region, which can be found here: https://www.who.int/europe/publications/i/item/9789289061940. The World Health Organization and other public health bodies are clear that duty rates have a role to play in achieving public health objectives.
Treasury ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events. The Government welcomes representations from the beer and pub sectors in advance of the Budget.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what comparative assessment she has made of beer duty in (a) the UK and (b) other European countries.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Pubs and brewers make a significant contribution to our economy and society, including through supporting jobs, and this is recognised in the tax system.
According to the Office for National Statistics' 2023 Business Register and Employment Survey, there were 21,000 people employed in the manufacture of beer and 474,000 people employed in public houses and bars across Great Britain.
The alcohol duty system supports pubs and hospitality businesses through Draught Relief, which ensures eligible products served on draught pay less duty. At Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced a duty cut on qualifying draught products – approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This is the equivalent to a 1p reduction on a typical pint.
The Chancellor has also confirmed her intention to permanently lower business rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties, including pubs, with rateable values below £500,000 from April 2026. This will help protect the jobs supported by the pub sector.
There is significant variation in alcohol taxation policy amongst European countries. The World Health Organization recently published a comparison of alcohol taxes across the WHO European Region, which can be found here: https://www.who.int/europe/publications/i/item/9789289061940. The World Health Organization and other public health bodies are clear that duty rates have a role to play in achieving public health objectives.
Treasury ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events. The Government welcomes representations from the beer and pub sectors in advance of the Budget.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to reduce beer duty.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Pubs and brewers make a significant contribution to our economy and society, including through supporting jobs, and this is recognised in the tax system.
According to the Office for National Statistics' 2023 Business Register and Employment Survey, there were 21,000 people employed in the manufacture of beer and 474,000 people employed in public houses and bars across Great Britain.
The alcohol duty system supports pubs and hospitality businesses through Draught Relief, which ensures eligible products served on draught pay less duty. At Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced a duty cut on qualifying draught products – approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This is the equivalent to a 1p reduction on a typical pint.
The Chancellor has also confirmed her intention to permanently lower business rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties, including pubs, with rateable values below £500,000 from April 2026. This will help protect the jobs supported by the pub sector.
There is significant variation in alcohol taxation policy amongst European countries. The World Health Organization recently published a comparison of alcohol taxes across the WHO European Region, which can be found here: https://www.who.int/europe/publications/i/item/9789289061940. The World Health Organization and other public health bodies are clear that duty rates have a role to play in achieving public health objectives.
Treasury ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events. The Government welcomes representations from the beer and pub sectors in advance of the Budget.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to hold discussions with representatives of the brewing and pub sector on how to (a) create growth and (b) reduce barriers to investment, before the Autumn Budget 2025.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government is committed to supporting small and local businesses in the hospitality, tourism, and services sectors, which provide a significant contribution to the UK economy and society.
We have launched a licensing taskforce to make recommendations to cut red tape and remove barriers to business growth that exist within the UK’s licensing framework. The industry-led Taskforce has shared its findings with the Government, and we aim to update publicly by the summer.
We have prevented retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) business rates relief from ending in April 2025 by extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business and frozen the small business multiplier.
From April 2026, we intend to introduce permanently lower business rates multipliers for RHL properties with rateable values below £500,000. The Treasury has, and will continue to, meet with the RHL sector to discuss these reforms.
At Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced a duty cut on qualifying draught products – approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This represents an overall reduction in duty bills of over £85m a year and increased the relief available on draught products to 13.9%.
We have protected small businesses from the impact of the increase to employer National Insurance by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. This means that 865,000 employers will pay no employer NICs at all this year, and more than half of employers will see no change or will gain overall from this package.
Furthermore, the Department of Business and Trade will soon be publishing its Small Business Strategy, which will announce further measures to support small businesses in the hospitality sector and to revitalise high streets.
Through The Hospitality Support Scheme, the Government is working with Pub is the Hub and providing funds to help community pubs adapt to changing local needs, ensuring these vital social hubs continue delivering for their communities.
Additionally, we have funded a wide range of community assets, including pubs, through the Community Ownership Fund. On 23 December 2024, this Government announced the outcome of Round 4 of the Community Ownership Fund, the largest ever round to date.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether her Department has made an assessment of the potential merits of pubs in (a) supporting community wellbeing and (b) tackling social isolation.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government is committed to supporting small and local businesses in the hospitality, tourism, and services sectors, which provide a significant contribution to the UK economy and society.
We have launched a licensing taskforce to make recommendations to cut red tape and remove barriers to business growth that exist within the UK’s licensing framework. The industry-led Taskforce has shared its findings with the Government, and we aim to update publicly by the summer.
We have prevented retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) business rates relief from ending in April 2025 by extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business and frozen the small business multiplier.
From April 2026, we intend to introduce permanently lower business rates multipliers for RHL properties with rateable values below £500,000. The Treasury has, and will continue to, meet with the RHL sector to discuss these reforms.
At Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced a duty cut on qualifying draught products – approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This represents an overall reduction in duty bills of over £85m a year and increased the relief available on draught products to 13.9%.
We have protected small businesses from the impact of the increase to employer National Insurance by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. This means that 865,000 employers will pay no employer NICs at all this year, and more than half of employers will see no change or will gain overall from this package.
Furthermore, the Department of Business and Trade will soon be publishing its Small Business Strategy, which will announce further measures to support small businesses in the hospitality sector and to revitalise high streets.
Through The Hospitality Support Scheme, the Government is working with Pub is the Hub and providing funds to help community pubs adapt to changing local needs, ensuring these vital social hubs continue delivering for their communities.
Additionally, we have funded a wide range of community assets, including pubs, through the Community Ownership Fund. On 23 December 2024, this Government announced the outcome of Round 4 of the Community Ownership Fund, the largest ever round to date.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, whether she plans to consult representatives from the beer and pub sector ahead of the Autumn Budget 2025.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The Government is committed to supporting small and local businesses in the hospitality, tourism, and services sectors, which provide a significant contribution to the UK economy and society.
We have launched a licensing taskforce to make recommendations to cut red tape and remove barriers to business growth that exist within the UK’s licensing framework. The industry-led Taskforce has shared its findings with the Government, and we aim to update publicly by the summer.
We have prevented retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) business rates relief from ending in April 2025 by extending it for one year at 40 per cent up to a cash cap of £110,000 per business and frozen the small business multiplier.
From April 2026, we intend to introduce permanently lower business rates multipliers for RHL properties with rateable values below £500,000. The Treasury has, and will continue to, meet with the RHL sector to discuss these reforms.
At Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced a duty cut on qualifying draught products – approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This represents an overall reduction in duty bills of over £85m a year and increased the relief available on draught products to 13.9%.
We have protected small businesses from the impact of the increase to employer National Insurance by increasing the Employment Allowance from £5,000 to £10,500. This means that 865,000 employers will pay no employer NICs at all this year, and more than half of employers will see no change or will gain overall from this package.
Furthermore, the Department of Business and Trade will soon be publishing its Small Business Strategy, which will announce further measures to support small businesses in the hospitality sector and to revitalise high streets.
Through The Hospitality Support Scheme, the Government is working with Pub is the Hub and providing funds to help community pubs adapt to changing local needs, ensuring these vital social hubs continue delivering for their communities.
Additionally, we have funded a wide range of community assets, including pubs, through the Community Ownership Fund. On 23 December 2024, this Government announced the outcome of Round 4 of the Community Ownership Fund, the largest ever round to date.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what estimate her Department has made of the number of jobs supported by the beer and pub sector.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Pubs and brewers make a significant contribution to our economy and society, including through supporting jobs, and this is recognised in the tax system.
According to the Office for National Statistics' 2023 Business Register and Employment Survey, there were 21,000 people employed in the manufacture of beer and 474,000 people employed in public houses and bars across Great Britain.
The alcohol duty system supports pubs and hospitality businesses through Draught Relief, which ensures eligible products served on draught pay less duty. At Autumn Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced a duty cut on qualifying draught products – approximately 60% of the alcoholic drinks sold in pubs. This is the equivalent to a 1p reduction on a typical pint.
The Chancellor has also confirmed her intention to permanently lower business rates for retail, hospitality, and leisure (RHL) properties, including pubs, with rateable values below £500,000 from April 2026. This will help protect the jobs supported by the pub sector.
There is significant variation in alcohol taxation policy amongst European countries. The World Health Organization recently published a comparison of alcohol taxes across the WHO European Region, which can be found here: https://www.who.int/europe/publications/i/item/9789289061940. The World Health Organization and other public health bodies are clear that duty rates have a role to play in achieving public health objectives.
Treasury ministers have meetings with a wide variety of organisations in the public and private sectors as part of the process of policy development and delivery.
The Chancellor makes decisions on tax policy at fiscal events. The Government welcomes representations from the beer and pub sectors in advance of the Budget.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment she has made of the potential impact of her policies on levels of inflation.
Answered by Emma Reynolds - Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs
The independent Office for Budget Responsibility (OBR) assessed the impact of Government policies on the level of inflation. While noting they expect inflation to remain close to the 2 per cent target throughout the forecast period, the OBR forecast a temporary rise in inflation, driven by gas and electricity prices and the direct effect of policies announced in the Budget. They conclude that, on average, just under half of the higher inflation in 2025 and 2026 is due to the impact of policies in Autumn Budget 2024.
In March 2025 the OBR assessed that they expected the policies in the forecast to provide a very small boost to CPI inflation, increasing the price level by less than 0.1 per cent by the end of the forecast.
The Bank of England has the responsibility of controlling inflation, and the Government fully supports them as they take action to sustainably return inflation to the 2% target.
Asked by: Gregory Stafford (Conservative - Farnham and Bordon)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, for what reason HMRC applies import duties to mastectomy bras.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
The UK’s tariff schedule, known as the UK Global Tariff (UKGT), adheres to global classification standards. Those classify mastectomy bras under a commodity code that covers a range of other textiles.
We continue to monitor the UKGT to ensure our Most Favoured Nation tariff schedule functions as effectively as possible, supports domestic priorities, and provides a stable operating environment for businesses.
Businesses are welcome to request the partial or full liberalisation of the import duty applied to the products under this commodity code, including mastectomy bras, either through the online feedback form or the next business suspensions window.