Thank you for contacting me about support for pubs. I agree that pubs are treasured community institutions. They make a important contribution to our communities as well as to the local and national economy.
It is therefore only right that the industry is given the appropriate support, and I am pleased that pubs will benefit from business rates support worth £13.6bn over the next five years, including a more generous Retail, Hospitality and Leisure relief scheme that has increased from 50 per cent to 75 per cent relief for 2023-24. Furthermore, the Government’s ‘Brexit Pubs Guarantee’ confirms that the duty on a draught pint will always be lower than its equivalent in a supermarket, while the new alcohol duty system implemented in August included a new Draught Relief that provides a significant duty discount on alcohol sold in containers of 20 litres or more in the on-trade. The Government is also funding a wide range of community assets, including pubs, through the Community Ownership Fund. To date, the fund has allocated £36.9m to 150 projects.
Beyond 2023-24, the Treasury keeps all taxes under review, and while it would not be right for me to speculate on changes outside of a fiscal event I will ensure your concerns are raised with my colleagues in the Treasury.
18/10/2023