On Thursday 6th May, millions will vote in one of the most anticipated and hyped general elections of our time.
But, as a publican, which way will you vote? If you’re still undecided, or want to check the main parties’ policies towards pubs, read on…
Alcohol duty
Labour’s regime on alcohol duty has been a massive issue for the trade. In the past two years beer duty alone has been hiked by a whopping 26 per cent. In the last Budget, Alistair Darling announced he would be extending the alcohol duty escalator until 2015. He also slapped a 10 per cent above-inflation rise on cider duty. However this will expire in June and have to go through Parliament again. Labour is planning to change the definition of cider so that higher-strength versions are taxed more.
The Tories have committed to raising taxes on “drinks related to anti-social behaviour”, such as super-strength lagers, ciders and “alcopops”. However shadow home secretary Chris Grayling has said “local traditional products” will not be affected. Labour’s recent 10 per cent cider duty increase would be scrapped.
The Lib Dems promise to review the system around alcohol tax to ensure it tackles “binge-drinking”, without “unfairly penalising responsible drinkers, pubs and important local industries”. They also vow to review the beer duty escalator and “explore the possibility” of a preferential rate of duty for draught beer.
Who wins you decide!
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