Bye Jeremy! Chancellor Hunt unveils ‘Brexit pub guarantee’ that cuts tax on pints

Jeremy Hunt today handed UK pubs a Brexit lifeline as he unveiled a promise to keep taxes on draft pints lower than those paid on supermarket cans and bottles.

The Chancellor unveiled a Brexit pubs guarantee that will keep the levy 11p lower than off-ales, amid a series of changes to alcohol taxation.

He told MPs: “From August 1, tariffs on cask products in pubs will be up to 11p lower than tariffs in supermarkets, a differential we will keep under a new Brexit pub guarantee. British ale may be warm, but the duty on a pint is frozen.”

Mr Hunt said the change will apply to “every pub in Northern Ireland” because of the Windsor framework unveiled by Rishi Sunak two weeks ago – and has yet to be approved by MPs.

But he hammered millions of wine drinkers today with a “two-pronged” tax crackdown that could see the price of some top-of-the-line drinks rise by almost 50p a bottle.

The chancellor used his budget to confirm alcohol taxes will rise with inflation – at the same time the government is reforming levies based on a drink’s alcohol content.

Industry insiders have warned that the two changes – after levies were frozen to help businesses last year – could mean a 20 per cent increase in the tax on drinks, including red and white wine, adding 44 pence to an average bottle .

The chancellor used his budget to confirm alcohol taxes will rise with inflation – at the same time the government is reforming levies based on a drink’s alcohol content.

The Wine and Spirit Trade Association warned today that this alone will send some wine prices up 9 percent. But if alcohol taxes are linked to RPI inflation between April and August, tax rates on some drinks could rise by as much as 20 percent. The chart shows the duty rate when 10% RPI is used.

Mr Sunak used his 2021 budget to set the new system, where the tax is to be paid based on the strength of the drink.

Miles Beale, WSTA Chief Executive, said: “Fortunately, Britain’s 33 million wine drinkers are unaware that the price of wine is set to skyrocket this summer.”

They are due to come into effect on August 1, in the middle of summer, and would be the biggest increases in half a century.

It’s not all bad news, however. For some “overdriven” drinks, the price could go down. The Wine and Spirit Trade Association said some sparkling wines could fall in price, along with cream liqueurs like Baileys and “gin in a can”-type premixed drinks.

The draft relief policy, devised by Rishi Sunak as chancellor, will adjust tax rates based on alcohol content from August 1.

The Wine and Spirits Association had warned that this alone would send some wine prices up 9 per cent.

But if the chancellor uses the budget to lift a current freeze on the service and instead ties it to RPI inflation, she believes some drinks could see tax rates rise by as much as 20 percent. The most recent RPI value was 13.4 percent.

This, WSTA claims, would add up to 44p for a bottle of wine, 75p for a bottle of vodka and £1.29 for a bottle of port.

Mr Sunak used his 2021 budget to set the new system, where the tax is to be paid based on the strength of the drink.

It was billed to reduce the cost of a pint by reducing the tax paid.

Source: | This article originally belongs to Dailymail.co.uk