The WSTA has called on the government to end the “doom loop” caused by its decision to continue to increase alcohol duty at the last Budget (as Harpers reported).
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The hospitality industry has reacted to yesterday’s announcement by the government that pubs and music venues would receive a rates relief package costing £80m next year alone (as Harpers reported).
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The government has revealed a support package aimed at helping pubs and music venues in England, worth £80m.
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Trying to extract any optimism from the autumn Budget is potentially a fool’s errand. Alcohol duty will increase in line with RPI – a move many in the sector had pleaded with the government not to make. With RPI currently set at 3.66%, according to the WSTA, this will see duty go up 11p on an average bottle of Prosecco, 13p on a bottle of red wine and 38p on a bottle of gin. This, combined with the cumulative strain of the inflationary pressures of the past five years on consumer buying power, will likely continue to inhibit spend on alcohol.
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HMRC take from the so-called ‘sin taxes’, comprising alcohol, tobacco and gambling, have continued on a downward trajectory, having fallen 35% in the last decade, according to research by leading accountancy firm UHY Hacker Young.
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New research from the Scotch Whisky Association (SWA) has found that in the year to August 2025 alcoholic beverages contributed £3 in every £100 of inflation rises.
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According to trade bodies UK Hospitality (UKH) and the British Retail Consortium (BRC) 500 high street retail premises will be at risk of closure if the planned business rates surcharge goes ahead.
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The Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) is calling on the government to get rid of plans to raise alcohol duty, to avoid further price rises that will fuel inflation.
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UKHospitality (UKH) has launched a new online tool for hospitality teams to call on the Government to support the sector by writing to their MP.
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Audit, tax and business advisory firm Blick Rothenberg has called on the government to provide financial support to the UK’s hospitality and retail sector to help businesses survive higher running costs.
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The government’s announcement of its new Industrial Strategy has been met with frustration from figures inside the hospitality trade. UKHospitality has noted that the sector is among the industries not included in the Strategy’s energy bill reduction plan.
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Hospitality business confidence has hit a low not seen since October 2022, when inflation peaked at a 40-year high.
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The UK’s leading drinks trade associations have written to the government highlighting deep concerns over the Extended Producer Responsibility for Packaging (EPR) scheme, while calling for a meeting with Defra.
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The government won’t talk to the trade about its assumptions on duty receipts because it gets them from the OBR. The OBR won’t talk to the trade about its assumptions on duty receipts because its only customer is the government. You couldn’t make it up.
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Each year our 50 Best Indies entries reveal a wealth of innovative ideas and interesting initiatives. Ahead of the big reveal in January, we shared just some of those – both serious and more fun – that caught our eye.
Barring a near-miracle, it is now highly unlikely that the current UK government will make permanent the temporary duty easement that is ending this coming 1 February. Speaking with Andrew Catchpole for the first of a two-part Soapbox, Miles Beale of the Wine & Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) – who campaigned tirelessly on that matter and helped galvanise the trade – says it’s time to learn the lessons from this “incredibly disappointing” outcome and look ahead to the key bumps coming down the road in 2025. The trade can, he argues, force through more positive and desirable outcomes in the near future, if it pulls together in a similarly galvanised way.
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A number of significant changes to the UK's employment landscape, including proposals to get people back into work and training, has received a mixed response from key stakeholders in the hospitality industry.
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The government has been urged to collaborate with the drinks industry to reduce the cost of non-alcoholic beers and wines. Mark Pritchard, the MP for The Wrekin, advised health minister Andrew Gwynne to explore ways to lower prices for these drinks.
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With the UK general election just a whisker away and the current Prime Minster all but admitting a crushing defeat, the WSTA has issued an open letter calling on the incoming government to make permanent the duty easement.
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With issues such as cash flow, VAT, businesses rates and staffing all placing continued strain on the UK drinks industry, businesses have just a few days left to decide which parties’ pledges have the best hope of steering the sector towards prosperity.
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