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Alun Cairns backs campaign urging Rishi Sunak to cut duty for draught beer

22 Oct 2021 2 minute read
Alun Cairns. Picture by Richard Townshend (CC BY 3.0).

Alun Cairns has backed a campaign urging Rishi Sunak to cut duty for draught beer.

The Tory MP for the Vale of Glamorgan, and former Welsh Secretary, joined with over a 100 Conservative backbench MPs in asking the Chancellor to to do more to support pubs and clubs at next week’s budget.

In a letter to Sunak, they have called on him to maintain a freeze on alcohol duties when he delivers his budget on Wednesday, as well as urge him to introduce a cut in duty for draught beer.

The letter says: “A lower beer duty on draught sales in pubs, clubs and bars, compared to off sales in supermarkets, would be a huge boost to their ability to prosper and rebuild from COVID-19.

“Moreover, it would be easy to understand, simple to administer, and importantly, demonstrate this government’s clear commitment to Britain’s pubs.”

The campaign spearheaded by North West Durham MP Richard Holden and is being supported by former Conservative leader Sir Iain Duncan Smith and ex-cabinet minister and Karen Bradley.

‘Lost tax’ 

Their letter acknowledges that a freeze on alcohol duties would mean that the UK Treasury loses around £300m in lost tax receipts and that this would lead to either higher taxes or lower spending elsewhere, or more borrowing.

However they argued that it would be a “worthwhile trade-off” that would help pubs, clubs and brewers “thrive and survive” after the Covid-19 pandemic.

They also called for wider review of alcohol duties to “consider wider reform and simplification of our alcohol duties system”. They described the current system as “complex at best” and “nonsensical at worst”.


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Mark
Mark
3 years ago

All the Westminster government needs to do is up the tax on un earned income, investments, why should people who have full-time jobs and still have to claim benefits to survive have their income taxed, while a certain few can earn thousands from tenants rent, stocks and shares and keep getting breaks

Gareth
Gareth
3 years ago

When is this little squirt going to back a campaign to cut Air Passenger Duty in Cardiff. The above beer campaign would result in a loss of 300million in tax, whereas if he supported a cut in APD in Cardiff it would generate revenue. But the beer campaign is proposed by the N/W Durham Tory MP, so the A**E licking rule, must be observed by Cairns

GW Atkinson
GW Atkinson
3 years ago

Looking at Cairns history, I wonder who has been paying him to say that the dodgy little f.

hdavies15
hdavies15
3 years ago

Has Cairns just secured another little earner from a company running a chain of pubs ? Follow the money is a good rule when seeking out Cairns’ motives with anything.

Rob
Rob
3 years ago

How about allowing Wales to cut Air Passenger Duty which would be an economic boost to your own constituents. Ah but Bristol comes first.

Quornby
Quornby
3 years ago

Well you’d have to be pxxxxssed t vote Tory.

ArgolFawr
ArgolFawr
3 years ago

Likes his tipple does our Alun.

Barry Pandy
Barry Pandy
3 years ago

Why are the tories so convinced that the only thing the working class care about is the price of a pint?

Y Cymro
Y Cymro
3 years ago

Is Tory toddler Alun Cairns old enough to drink in the question.

David spence
David spence
3 years ago

Stopped or tried to sabotage any rape trials lately

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