Reform UK Proposes 10% Hospitality VAT Rate in Pub Sector Support Package

Reform UK has announced a comprehensive five-point strategy aimed at supporting Britain’s struggling pub sector, with party leader Nigel Farage promising significant tax relief for hospitality businesses.

The centrepiece of the proposal is a reduction in VAT from the current 20% standard rate to 10% for the entire hospitality industry. The announcement, delivered from a pub venue, represents one of the party’s most substantial policy commitments to the licensed trade ahead of the next general election.

Five-Point Plan Details

The package includes several key measures designed to ease financial pressures on publicans and hospitality operators:
• A reduction in hospitality VAT to 10%
• Reversal of the employer National Insurance increase affecting hospitality businesses introduced in the recent Budget
• A 10% cut to beer duty
• Phased abolition of business rates for pubs over four years
• Regulatory changes to support licensees

Reform MP Lee Anderson criticised both major parties for their handling of the pub sector, describing closures across the past decade as a loss to British cultural heritage. He characterised the situation facing pubs as having reached crisis levels, arguing that each closure represents more than just an economic loss.

“The loss of one pub is not just the loss of livelihood for a landlord, or the loss of a local employment hub. The loss of one pub is a loss to all of us as inheritors of a tradition dating back to Roman rule,” he said.

Funding Proposal

The party has outlined how it intends to finance these measures, stating the cost would be offset through modifications to Universal Credit policies. Reform UK estimates this approach would generate approximately £3 billion by 2029-30, funds they propose directing towards hospitality sector support.
The announcement follows recent government intervention in the pub sector. Last week, the Chancellor revealed support measures worth around £100 million for the next financial year, including a 15% business rates discount for English pubs and extended opening hours. That relief will remain frozen for the subsequent two years.