The British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA), the leading trade association representing Britain’s Brewers and pubs, has today welcomed a pledge from the Conservative Party to introduce measures to help businesses.
The measures, announced by Boris Johnson at a CBI Conference in London today, include cuts to business rates and National Insurance contributions.
The pledge follows the publication of the BBPA’s manifesto for beer and pubs, which has called on the next Government to reform the current unfair business rates system, as well as implement other policies to help Britain’s brewers and publicans.
Emma McClarkin, Chief Executive of the British Beer & Pub Association, commented:
“We have been calling for the reform of the broken business rates system for many years. Pubs pay 2.8% of the business rates bill, despite accounting for just 0.5% of turnover. Reducing their rates is a very welcome move, helping pubs to keep their doors open until the fundamentally unfair system is overhauled.
“As an industry we employ over 900,000 people, but face sharply rising costs when it comes to employment. The pledge to cut National Insurance contributions is therefore most welcome, especially as the vast majority of pubs are run as small businesses.
“Given that seven in ten alcoholic drinks sold in a pub are beer, the most direct way of keeping them viable is to cut beer duty, which we continue to call on the next Government to do.”