Stephen's views on the beer tax and closure of pubs
I am very concerned about the continued loss of local pubs in Bristol, often as a result of restrictive covenants placed on the use of premises by the large chains.
A survey conducted by the British Beer and Pub Association has shown that pub numbers in Bristol are down from 525 to 498 from 2005 to 2009, a net loss of 27 pubs.
This has been a long term interest of mine and I have previously signed Early Day Motion (EDM) 10, entitled "Campaign to Save the Great British Pub", which states:
"That this House is alarmed that five public houses are closing down every day, with beer sales in pubs at their lowest level for nearly 40 years; is deeply concerned as to the future of 7,500 public houses and more than 40,000 jobs; supports the launch of a campaign to mobilise public and political support to save the Great British Pub; believes that traditional public houses are being unfairly priced out of the market while supermarkets offer cheap deals without the level of restrictions and responsibilities required of licences of public… and calls on the Government to adopt the campaign's Last Orders, a five-point plan to save the British pub, as a way forward in safeguarding the future of Britain's traditional public houses".
In addition, in February 2009, I signed EDM 715 "Save the Pub Group" which states:
"That this House welcomes the formation of the All-Party Parliamentary Save the Pub Group; shares the belief of the group that British pubs are an important part of this country's history and heritage and are hugely important to the communities they serve; believes that well-run community pubs are sociable, controlled environments in which to enjoy alcohol and so are part of the solution to problem drinking".
The Government announced an increase in last year's Pre-Budget Report to counter potential price reductions caused by the new 15% rate of Value Added Tax. The Liberal Democrats tabled amendments to the Finance Bill to try and prevent these increases because whilst the VAT cut is expected to be temporary the beer duty increase is not.
As with Post Offices, I believe that good pubs are an asset to the communities they serve. They are also important small businesses: they provide jobs and support our local economy. It is crucial therefore that we support them. My concern is that tax rises on beer will harm pubs which are already struggling in difficult economic circumstances and closing at a record rate. They will also damage smaller independent beer breweries.
In March 2009, I signed EDM 1086 - "Duty on Beer and Cider" - which states:
"That this House believes that pubs and clubs are a vital part of communities and recognises that they are under pressure from long-term trends in how citizens consume alcohol; further believes that price and taxation constitutes only one of a limited number of factors affecting their income but that the tax system should recognise the need to support pubs and clubs whilst not encouraging increases in off-trade consumption; calls on the Government to introduce measures in the 2009 Budget which place different rates of duty on draught as opposed to pre-packaged beers and cider; and further believes that by having a lower rate of duty on draught beers sold in pubs the Government can offer support to pubs and clubs without encouraging binge drinking or incurring large losses of revenues."
In addition, I have written to the Treasury conveying the growing concern among the people of Bristol West of tax hikes on alcohol and the closing of pubs.
There is genuine concern, which I share, about excessive alcohol consumption and the impact that it is having on behaviour in public places. But there is little evidence to suggest that the higher taxes in the Budget will have a significant impact on binge drinking, and the suspicion must be that the Government's primary motivation was to raise additional revenue.
We need to see a broader and more intelligent response to binge drinking. This should include more being done to prevent alcohol sales to under-18s, the introduction of new social minimum pricing measures to stop irresponsible pricing by supermarkets and better enforcement of existing laws which prevent bars from selling alcohol to customers who are clearly drunk.
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