There comes a point when I have to stop updating the articles that I am working on and send them off to be turned into a magazine. Here is the news that came in afterwards.
IMPORTANT REVIEWS ANNOUNCED
The Government has announced two reviews. One is into business rates and is long overdue, especially given the unfair proposals that the Government had already announced. The Government have asked for submissions by the end of September. In the meantime, the next revaluation, originally scheduled for 1 April next year, has been postponed to 2023. The review was welcomed by Emma McClarkin, the Chief Executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, who reminded us that “pubs pay 2.8% of the entire business rates bill, despite accounting for just 0.5% of business turnover”, while her opposite number at the British Institute of Innkeeping, Steven Alton had hoped that the current ‘business rates holiday’ would be continued until April 2022. CAMRA’s National Chairman, Nik Antona, said, “The pub sector currently overpays in business rates by £500 million a year and rising rates are forcing hard–working publicans to push up prices for consumers or close their doors forever. The Government must make the business rates system fairer for pubs to ensure their continued survival.”
The second review is into alcohol duty. Also as mentioned on page 11, like VAT, the Government will have a free hand in setting alcohol duty after 1 January. Nik Antona again: “This review into how alcohol can be taxed more fairly is a fantastic opportunity for the Government to save our pubs by introducing a lower rate of duty on draught beer, with savings passed on to pubs and consumers. A preferential rate of duty on draught beer is a radical proposal that will really help by supporting and encouraging drinking in the supervised setting of the local pub. This will also create and sustain jobs and level the playing field between pubs and cheap supermarket alcohol.” Alcohol duty is, of course, one of the traditional ‘sin taxes’ and brings the Government substantial revenue. No doubt the anti-alcohol lobby will be having their say as well. We should not be over-optimistic.
CHANGES TO SMALL BREWERS’ DUTY RELIEF
Having announced that they were reviewing alcohol duty, I, for one, was surprised when, the very next day, the Government proposed a change to the Small Breweries’ Duty Relief (SBDR) system. As mentioned on page 29, the Treasury has been working on this since 2018 and the Society of Independent Brewers (SIBA) had hoped for some progress. CAMRA’s reaction, again from Nik Antona, was, “Whilst the removal of the cliff edge in the Small Brewers Relief Scheme will benefit many brewers and help successful businesses to grow, CAMRA does not believe this should be achieved at the expense of small brewers. Given the impacts of COVID-19 and the lack of support for wet-led pubs and independent producers, the Government should be doing everything it can to support the brewing industry: not ‘robbing Peter to pay Paul’ and removing much-needed help from those who already receive it. It is clear that the devil
will be in the detail of how these changes will work in practice. We’ll be urging the Government to make sure any changes to Small Brewers Relief maintain existing help for small brewers, support as many producers as possible and make sure consumers can continue to enjoy the widest possible choice of local and independent cask ales.”
SBDR is a complex matter and I do not have space here to explain the implications. Readers may look forward to that in the next edition. Although it appears to have already decided what it is going to do, the Government says that ‘a technical consultation will be brought forward in the autumn’. Curiously, the announcement continued, “the Government will also consult on the potential for a grace period for small breweries that decide to merge”. Any proposal is going to be divisive and will not be met with universal approval.
SMOKING OUTSIDE
A group of peers had proposed an amendment to what is now the Business and Planning Act relating to smoking in the outdoor areas of pubs, cafes and restaurants. On 19 July, the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government announced that it had reached a compromise with them and had tabled its own amendment which will require outdoor areas to be split into smoking and non-smoking sections. The Government’s press release stated that there was no ban on outdoor smoking as such, it was simply giving customers “more choice by ensuring premises offer separate seating for smokers and non-smokers outside”. Pubs will have to ensure that there is a two metre gap between non-smoking and smoking areas, ash trays or similar must not be left on furniture in the smoke- free areas and those areas must have clear ‘no smoking’ signage.
WAIT ON…
Following an increase in the reinfection rate, it was announced on 16 July that the reopening of wet-led pubs in the Republic of Ireland had been postponed until 10 August.
EAGLE ALE HOUSE, BATTERSEA
Good news. Dave Law and Simon Clarke have negotiated a new lease which is ‘free of tie’, so expect even more interesting beers in one of CAMRA’s South West London branch’s favourite pubs (Pub of the Year in 2014).
Tony Hedger