Harpers Wine & Spirit Trade News

A duty to industry

Published: 15 February, 2021

Will the chancellor address the continuing controversy over punishing duty rates in the wine and spirits sectors in the 3 March Budget? Lisa Riley reports.

Beale: ‘Punishingly high duty rates stifling home grown wine and spirit businesses’

Published: 28 January, 2021

The WSTA has renewed its calls on the Chancellor to cut alcohol duty to allow UK businesses to “thrive and compete on a global stage”.

Nicholls marks one year Covid ‘anniversary’ – “We didn’t know it would be a tsunami”

Published: 21 January, 2021

UK Hospitality chief Kate Nicholls has renewed calls for additional government support a year on from her first strategy meetings with ministers at the beginning of the pandemic.

Beale: ‘OIV membership is only half of the picture’

Published: 07 January, 2021

The Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) has welcomed the UK government’s decisions to re-join the International Organisation of Vine and Wine (OIV) as a member, but also said that OIV membership was “only half the picture”.

Trade bodies call for revamp of alcohol duty system

Published: 01 December, 2020

UK Hospitality (UKH) and the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII) have called on the government to “revamp and simplify” the system of alcohol duty in order to boost businesses and deliver on the government’s public health initiatives.

Miles Beale: Trade deal will be within the week or not at all

Published: 25 November, 2020

Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) chief executive Miles Beale has said that the UK is likely to get ‘something or nothing’ in terms of a trade deal over the coming week, while insisting that a ‘deal is still better than no deal at all’.

Beale: 'The threat of VI-1 forms is still very real’

Published: 28 October, 2020

The WSTA has warned that the threat of VI-1 forms is still "very real", saying that the policy, not just the timing, still needs to change.

WSTA crowns rum the drink of lockdown

Published: 26 October, 2020

The WSTA has crowned rum the "drink of lockdown" with the spirit enjoying the biggest growth across all spirits during the period, according to new WSTA data.

Beale: ‘Supply chain must be eligible for cash grants’

Published: 26 October, 2020

The WSTA has urged the government to clarify that the cash grants promised as a support measure for the hospitality sector applies to the supply chain too.

WSTA reiterates concerns for “overlooked” supply chain

Published: 13 October, 2020

The Wine & Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) has reiterated its concerns for businesses that supply the hospitality sector.

APPG report lays bare “disastrous impact” of VI-1s

Published: 22 September, 2020

A new report from a committee of MPs into the impact of VI-1 wine import certificates has warned that the red tape will cause chaos and price hikes.

Relief as gin spared from US tariff hikes, but battle for Scotch continues

Published: 13 August, 2020

The US has backed down on its threat to expand a 16-year old trade fight with the European Union to impose tariffs on gin – a move which would have been “hugely detrimental” for the British alcohol industry.

Profile: Miles Beale in the thick of it

Published: 29 July, 2020

The WSTA’s Miles Beale talks Andrew Catchpole through life at the trade’s lobbying body during extraordinary times

UK should embrace “best in class” IT to secure global drinks trading pre-eminence

Published: 16 July, 2020

The UK’s withdrawal from the EU and subsequent shake up of import-export requirements is an opportunity to implement a system that secures Britain’s place as the unrivalled hub of international drinks trading.

MPs launch probe into the impact of wine certification

Published: 13 July, 2020

A group of MPs is today launching an inquiry into the impact of wine certification set to be brought into force at the end of the Brexit transition period on 1 January 2021.

WSTA hits out at government for failing to count true cost of VI-1 certification

Published: 15 June, 2020

The WSTA has hit out at government for misleading the public over claims that EU wine importation costs would, according to Defra, be “nil or negligible”.

WSTA launches weekly coronavirus webinar

Published: 25 March, 2020

The WSTA has announced it is launching a weekly webinar series on coronavirus (Covid-19) and the impact on the world of wines and spirits.

Drinks companies join forces to plea for duty suspension

Published: 23 March, 2020

An initial 32 drinks companies (all WSTA members) have joined forces to plea for a cash lifeline, calling collectively on the Chancellor to suspend duty.

Budget: Chancellor announces freeze on all alcohol duty

Published: 11 March, 2020

Duty on wines, spirits and beers is to be frozen, new Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced in today’s budget, allaying trade fears of another rise in line with inflation.

WSTA calls on Chancellor to support wine and spirit SMEs

Published: 18 February, 2020

Several UK wine and spirit SMEs have united to urge the new Chancellor, Rishi Sunak MP, to cut wine and spirit duty by 2% to help boost British business.