Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of introducing a preferential rate of duty for draught beer.

HM Treasury keeps all taxes under review whilst preparing for fiscal events.

A preferential rate of duty for draught beer would result in significant pressure on the public finances, entailing cuts in funding for public services or increased borrowing.

We continue to support the beer industry, as can be seen through our action to freeze beer duty at Autumn Budget 2018, for the second successive year. This freeze has meant the typical pint of beer in 2019 will be 2p lower than it would have been had duty increased with inflation.