Beer sales plummet as fight for fairer tax deal moves up a gear
According to the British Beer & Pub Association’s (BBPA) latest UK quarterly beer barometer, UK beer sales fell by 5.6 per cent in the third quarter, putting jobs in the brewing and pub sector at risk.
The BBPA’s chief executive Brigid Simmonds believes the figures give even more ammunition with which to attack the Government’s high beer taxes.
“If the Government wants to encourage growth, back British business and support local communities, then it must end the Beer Duty escalator,” said Simmonds. “The Chancellor must listen to the thousands of people now calling for a change, so the sector can grow, create jobs and contribute more to UK plc.”
MPs meet today...
The fight for a fairer tax deal moves up a gear today, with MPs who champion the sector pushing for a full Parliamentary debate on the impact of the controversial beer duty escalator, following a petition signed by over 100,000 peoplecalling for Government action on the issue.
British beer has endured a 42 per cent tax hike since March 2008. A further two per cent above inflation increase proposed for the 2013 Budget is set to take the figure towards 50 per cent.
Analysis from Oxford Economics indicates that a duty freeze in March 2013 would save 5,000 jobs in the sector which employs almost one million people – mostly younger people in Britain’s pubs.
The previous Beer Barometersaw UK beer sales dip 5.3 per cent in the second quarter of 2012, due to poor weather and the impact of the tax hike in the March 2012 Budget.
