Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to continue the Community Pub Business Support Programme beyond March 2018.

The Government continues to support the community ownership of pubs where they deliver a clear benefit to their local communities. The £3.62 million More Than A Pub Programme is jointly funded by my Department and Power to Change, the independent trust supporting businesses in England.

This two year programme was launched in Spring 2016, with the aim to create a lasting legacy for both the communities supported, and the many more communities they inspire in years to come. To this end, the Government has created a community pubs loan fund, which will continue to be available to community pubs until 2025.

In addition to the support announced in the Autumn Budget 2017 with duties on beer, cider, wine and spirits frozen in 2018, and the extension to March 2019 of a £1,000 discount to pubs with a rateable value below £100,000, the Government continues to support the work of not-for-profit organisation such as the Plunkett Foundation and Pub is The Hub, to help communities realise their goals of a sustainable local pub.