Hospitality Industry: Coronavirus

(asked on 15th June 2021) - View Source

Question to the HM Treasury:

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, with reference to the extension of covid-19 restrictions beyond 21 June 2021, what steps the Government is taking to support the hospitality sector; if he will take steps to reduce the tax burden on businesses affected by that extension; and what assessment he has made of the potential effect of raising VAT from 5 per cent in September 2021 on the events and hospitality sectors.


Answered by
Jesse Norman Portrait
Jesse Norman
This question was answered on 21st June 2021

At Budget, the Chancellor was aware of the potential for short delays in the roadmap and announced a generous extension to existing economic support. In order to provide continuity for businesses, key measures including the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme, Self-Employment Income Support Scheme, VAT cut extension, Business Rates Holiday, and Recovery Loan scheme do not end until September or after.

The extension to the temporary reduced rate of VAT (5 per cent) for the tourism and hospitality sector means that the relief will now end on 30 September 2021. On 1 October 2021, a new reduced rate of 12.5 per cent will be introduced for these goods and services to help businesses manage the transition back to the standard rate. The new rate will end on 31 March 2022.

This relief has cost over £7 billion and has helped support the cash flow and viability of 150,000 businesses and protect over 2.4 million jobs. While the Government keeps all taxes under review, there are no plans to extend the reduced rate of VAT further.

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