Hospitality industry reacts to Reeves' pub support package

By Oliver Catchpole

Published: 28 January, 2026

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).

The government support came after a massive industry backlash which warned the Chancellor of widespread closures – due to business rates increases due to occur in April – if it did not provide support for hospitality businesses.

Despite welcoming the relief for pubs, many in the trade felt that the policy was not anywhere near broad enough, noting that restaurants, hotels and many other hospitality businesses had been left out in the cold.

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Looking at the positives, Kate Nicholls, chair of trade body UK Hospitality, said: “We welcome the recognition by the Prime Minister and the Chancellor of the scale of the challenges facing the hospitality sector.

“The rising cost of doing business and business rates increases is a hospitality-wide problem that needs a hospitality-wide solution. The Government’s immediate review of hospitality valuations going forward is clear recognition of this.”

However, she added that: “The devil will be in the detail, but we need to see pace and urgency to deliver the reform desperately needed to reduce hospitality’s tax burden, drive demand, and protect jobs and growth. We will work with the Government over the next six months to hold their feet to the fire to deliver this.

“This emergency announcement to provide additional funding is helpful to address an acute challenge facing pubs.

“The reality remains that we still have restaurants and hotels facing severe challenges from successive Budgets. They need to see substantive solutions that genuinely reduce their costs.”

More critical of the policy, Miles Beale, chief executive of the WSTA, added: “[The government’s decision] will come as a bitter disappointment to the rest of the retail, hospitality and leisure sector, such as restaurants and high street retailers which are facing the same survival pressures but have been left out.

“Why single out specific sectors when all business types are suffering?

For WSTA members — producers, wholesalers, retailers and many hospitality businesses and their supply chains — this is a double blow, landing just as alcohol duty rises take effect on 1 February.”

Champa Magesh, MD at Access Hospitality echoed Beale. He said: “It is disappointing that this latest package focuses primarily on pubs, without extending the same level of relief to restaurants, hotels and the wider hospitality sector.

“Hospitality is an interconnected ecosystem, and long–term resilience depends on ensuring all venues–large or small, wet–led or food–led, accommodation or leisure are supported consistently.”

Magesh's colleague, Nicola Longfield, head of accommodation at Access Hospitality, expanded on this, criticising the government for not expanding relief to hotels. She said: “Hotels are part of the £33.7 billion inbound tourism economy.

“They employ local people, train young workers, anchor high streets and support supply chains from linen suppliers to local food producers. The hospitality sector contributed £69.5 billion (2.8%) to UK GDP in 2023.

“We ask the Government to provide relief across the entire hospitality industry to ensure fairness and protect the sector’s economic and social contribution to the UK.”

Many in the trade also called for wider reforms to the tax and business rates system, which currently puts immense pressure on struggling hospitality businesses.

While he celebrated the government’s announcement, Kevin Georgel, chief executive, St Austell Brewery, explained: “We hope that this intervention is a recognition that we need a full review of the fiscal and regulatory landscape that has placed an unfair and unsustainable burden on the Great British pub.

“We now need to continue working with the government to permanently overhaul the outdated business rates system.”

Saxon Moseley, head of leisure and hospitality at audit, tax and consulting adviser RSM UK, agreed: “Without intervention, the end of the Covid-era business rates support combined with changes to the rateable value would’ve come as a double whammy for the industry, particularly smaller, independent operators.

“While we welcome the news, more needs to be done. Changing the rates just for pubs and live music venues, but not restaurants and hotels, will create inconsistencies in the hospitality sector, adding further complexity and nuance in the tax system.

“Instead of tinkering at the edges of the existing business rates system, what’s needed is widespread reform that instils fairness in the hospitality market.

Picture Credit: Greye on Pixabay

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