Beer duty escalator to be debated by MPs on 1 November
The decision was taken by the Backbench Business Committee today after hearing representations from All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group chairman MP Andrew Griffiths and All-Party Parliamentary Save the Pub Group chairman MP Greg Mulholland.
The representations were made after the e-petition calling for the scrapping of the beer duty escalator hit over 100,000 signatures on 20 September.
Griffiths told the committee today: "We think this is such important issue for all our constituencies that it merits a debate on the floor of the House with a voteable motion.
"Community pub are closing and we all recognise the importance of the community pub but also drinking establishments on our high streets and jobs and growth.
"We have a voteable motion calling on the Government to have a review of taxation policy before the budget of 2013. We think this voteable motion will give backbench members of Parliament some real control into the way taxation policy is going on pub, communities and jobs."
Mulholland supported the calls. He said: "There has never been a Treasury review of the beer duty escalator since its introduction. We are calling specifically for that to happen now before the Budget of 2013 to allow the Treasury to make a review and make recommendations on how this should be changed.
"It is essential this has to be on the floor of the house with a very clear aim to get this review."
The motion to be debated will ask for a thorough review of the economic and social impact of the beer duty escalator to report back before the 2013 budget.
The British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) welcomed the news.
Brigid Simmonds, BBPA Chief Executive, said: “I welcome this decision; which shows many MPs are indeed listening to the public on this issue. This is about consumers - pub goers, beer drinkers and licensees who hate the tax which hits everyone hard. The task now is to persuade the Government that excessive tax hikes are the wrong policy, hurting jobs and pubs when instead, we could be delivering growth and employment.”
