Trade fury at Darling's duty rise

The pub industry is in a state of utter shock this morning after the news that alcohol duty will rise again by 8% from Monday.

Chancellor Alistair Darling now faces an even fiercer backlash from a beleaguered industry already close to breaking point. Alcohol duty has now risen a whopping 17% within the year with promises of a 2% above inflation duty escalator for the next four years.

Darling, already barred from many pubs, cut VAT 2.5% to 15% from Monday 1 December for 13 months in his Pre-Budget Report.

However, he has off-set this increase with an 8% rise in duty on alcohol. Unlike, the VAT cut, the duty rise is also permanent.

It will put an additional 3p on a pint of beer and 13p on a bottle of wine. The industry had asked for help with beer volumes plummeting to levels not seen before the Great Depression of the 1930s and pubs closing at the rate of 36 a week but instead Darling has once again hammered another nail in the coffin.

"Here we go again — I'm staggered that, while all other businesses are being given a boost by the lowering of the VAT rate to 15%, the licensed retail sector is yet again being singled out with an alcohol duty rise to off-set the cuts," said BII chief executive John McNamara.

"But the real poison pill is that the duty will be maintained after the VAT cut is restored in January 2010. Despite all the representations our industry has made to the Government via our many channels, the Chancellor continues to batter us."

Supermarkets​

The Treasury said it believed that the move would force supermarkets to up their prices while prices in pubs would remain relatively stable. But the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR) said that was not the case.

"The whole of the announcement is one big gamble and yet again the Chancellor is risking the future of Britain's pub industry," said ALMR chief executive Nick Bish.

"Pubs and bars have been struggling for some time — they cannot absorb duty rises like the supermarkets can, and so will be even more threatened by the below-cost marketing that fuels irresponsible drinking.

"The recession has forced pub closures at an unprecedented rate and each closure costs about 10 jobs in that small business and has an impact on the local suppliers and contractors too.

"This procession of more and more excise duty completely disregards the pub as a small business, as a local employer and as a social pillar for the community."

"The reality is that we simply can not continue to bear more than our fair share of the tax burden. The Chancellor ignores the law of diminishing returns and risks there being no pub industry left, no pubs for him to tax, no pubs for the public to enjoy and no pubs to provide vital employment."

• Chancellor raises duty on alcohol...again​

Now more than ever is the time to get involved and voice opposition. Join our Fight the Hikes campaign.​

Follow these easy steps:​

1. Download a Fight the Hikes Poster and put it up in your pub.

2. Download the Fight The Hikes Petition and get your regulars to join the campaign. Consumer support is vital.

3. Send your completed petitions to Fight the Hikes, Morning Advertiser, William Reed Business Media, Broadfield Park, Crawley, West Sussex, RH11 9RT.

4. Join the Fight the Hikes Facebook group​.

5. Take a picture of you, staff and customers with the poster and petition and email it to Ewan.Turney@william-reed.co.uk​.

• Remember you can also Ban the Chancellor from your pub by clicking here​.