Asked by: Lisa Smart (Liberal Democrat - Hazel Grove)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing draught duty relief for (a) beer and (b) cider served in pubs in Hazel Grove constituency.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Pubs make an enormous contribution to our economy and society, and this is recognised in the tax system.
The current alcohol duty system supports pubs through Draught Relief, which ensures eligible products served on draught pay less duty.
The Government is closely monitoring the impact of the recent reforms and rates that took effect on 1 August 2023. As with all taxes, the Government keeps the alcohol duty system under review during its Budget process.
Asked by: Julie Minns (Labour - Carlisle)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make an assessment of the potential merits of increasing draught duty relief for (a) beer and (b) cider served in pubs in Carlisle.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Pubs and breweries make an enormous contribution to our economy and society, and this is recognised in the tax system.
The current alcohol duty system supports pubs and breweries through Draught Relief, which ensures eligible products served on draught pay less duty. The duty system also supports small producers by providing a tapered duty discount on products below 8.5% alcohol by volume (ABV).
Supporting our high streets is a vital part of our economic growth mission and the Government is committed to working in partnership with businesses and local communities to deliver this.
The Government is closely monitoring the impact of the recent reforms and rates that took effect on 1 August 2023. As with all taxes, the Government keeps the alcohol duty system under review during its Budget process.
Asked by: Sarah Green (Liberal Democrat - Chesham and Amersham)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if she will make it her policy to reduce beer duty in line with cider.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Alcohol duties collectively raise over £12bn a year, helping to fund vital public services and addressing the harms caused to society and public health by excessive or irresponsible drinking.
Under the recent alcohol duty reforms, there remains a small number of disparities for products between 3.5 per cent and 8.5 per cent ABV, owing to concerns about the impact on the cider industry at the time of the reforms.
The Government is closely monitoring the impact of the recent reforms and rates that took effect on 1 August 2023, and the Chancellor has confirmed that she will set out plans for tax – as well as spending and borrowing – in the usual way at the Budget on 30 October.
Asked by: Mark Garnier (Conservative - Wyre Forest)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, if he will make an assessment of the potential merits of reviewing the incentives in the Sustainable Farming Incentive for cider apple orchards.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
The expanded Sustainable Farming Incentive (SFI) offer published in May 2024 includes capital grants to plant cider apple trees as part of an Agro-forestry system, and ongoing payments for actions which could be used in or around cider orchards such as flower rich grass margins blocks or strips, Integrated Pest Management plans, or managing hedgerows. Looking ahead, we will optimise Environmental Land Management schemes including SFI in an orderly way, over time, ensuring they produce the right outcomes for all farmers, for food security and for nature’s recovery in a just and equitable way.
Asked by: Anna Sabine (Liberal Democrat - Frome and East Somerset)
Question to the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs:
To ask the Secretary of State for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what steps his Department is taking to support (a) apple farmers and (b) cider makers whose crops have been affected by ermine moths in Somerset.
Answered by Daniel Zeichner
Dessert and culinary apples play an important role in local economies, with the sector worth a combined £188 million in 2023.
The Government is committed to championing British farming and, in partnership with the sector, we are considering a number of ways to achieve our ambitious, measurable and long-term goals for the sector, including development of new crop varieties that are more resistant to pests such as ermine moths.
Asked by: Richard Holden (Conservative - Basildon and Billericay)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, what assessment her Department has made of the impact of differential duty for draught beer on (a) pubs and (b) clubs.
Answered by James Murray - Chief Secretary to the Treasury
Under the new alcohol duty system, Draught Relief provides a 9.2% duty reduction on draught beer and cider products below 8.5% alcohol by volume.
The Government is closely monitoring the impact of the recent reforms, including Draught Relief, that took effect on 1 August 2023. It is essential for this evaluation process to allow sufficient time to understand the impacts on the alcohol market, and for HMRC to gather useful and accurate data with which to assess the effects of the reform.
As with all taxes, the Government keeps the alcohol duty system under review during its yearly Budget process.
Asked by: Emily Thornberry (Labour - Islington South and Finsbury)
Question to the Department for Business and Trade:
To ask the Secretary of State for Business and Trade, pursuant to the Answer of 19 April 2024 to Question 20567 on Food: Japan, which two products were included in the second tranche submitted to the Japanese authorities other than Armagh Bramley Apples, Ayrshire New Potatoes, Beacon Fell Lancashire Cheese, Bonchester Cheese, Buxton Blue, Carmarthen Ham, Cornish Sardines, Darnibole Wine, Dorset Blue Cheese, Dovedale Cheese, Exmoor Blue Cheese, Fal Oyster, Fenland Celery, Gloucestershire Cider, Gloucestershire Perry, Lakeland Herdwick, Native Shetland Wool, New Season Comber Potatoes, Newmarket Sausage, Orkney Beef, Orkney Lamb, Rutland Bitter, Scottish Wild Salmon, Shetland Lamb, Swaledale Cheese, Swaledale Ewes Cheese, Teviotdale Cheese, Traditional Welsh Cider, Traditional Welsh Perry, Vale of Clwyd Denbigh Plum, Vale of Evesham Asparagus, West Wales Coracle Caught Salmon, West Wales Coracle Caught Sewin, Whitstable Oysters, Worcestershire Cider, Worcestershire Perry and Yorkshire Forced Rhubarb.
Answered by Greg Hands
I refer the Honourable Member to response UIN 20567, tabled on 26 March 2024.
Asked by: Helen Grant (Conservative - Maidstone and Malling)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will make it his policy to reduce the tax on draught (a) beer and (b) cider.
Answered by Gareth Davies - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
At Spring Budget 2024, the Chancellor announced that alcohol duty would be frozen until 1 February 2025 to support alcohol producers, pubs, and consumers with cost of living pressures.
This extends the six months freeze the Government announced at Autumn Statement 2023, providing businesses time to adapt to the new duty system introduced on 1 August 2023.
Asked by: Claire Hanna (Social Democratic & Labour Party - Belfast South and Mid Down)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, if he will increase the value of draught relief to 20% for qualifying beer and cider products in the spring Budget 2024.
Answered by Gareth Davies - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
Draught Relief, introduced under the new alcohol duty system, provides a reduction in the duty on draught beer and cider by 9.2% and helps to level the playing field between pubs and supermarkets, allowing pubs and brewers to price their on-trade products more competitively. The Brexit Pubs Guarantee ensures that draught products will always be subject to lower duty than their supermarket equivalent.
The Government is closely monitoring the impact of the recent reforms and will evaluate the impact of the new rates and structures three years after the changes took effect on 1 August 2023. This will allow time to understand the impacts on the alcohol market, and for HMRC to gather useful and accurate data with which to evaluate the effects of the reform.
The Government is unable to speculate on tax matters outside of fiscal events. As with all taxes, the Government keeps the alcohol duty system under review during its yearly Budget process.
Asked by: Navendu Mishra (Labour - Stockport)
Question to the HM Treasury:
To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer, pursuant to the Answer of 16 February 2024 to Question 14382 on Beer and Cider: Tax Allowances, whether he has made an assessment of the potential impact of the rules relating to off-site consumption of products covered by Draught Relief on the volume of beer and cider wasted at (a) beer and cider festivals and (b) community pubs.
Answered by Gareth Davies - Shadow Minister (Business and Trade)
The Government engaged extensively with external stakeholders as part of the development and delivery process for the new alcohol duty system, including in relation to Draught Relief.
HMRC has published guidance explaining the changes, including in relation to Draught Relief, and ran 3 webinars for businesses - a recording of the webinar is available at: HMRC email updates, videos and webinars for Alcohol Duty - GOV.UK (www.gov.uk). HMRC has also worked with trade associations to ensure they share the guidance with their members.
HMRC has also published a tax information and impact note setting out the impact of the measure, which can be found here: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/reform-of-the-alcohol-duty-system/reform-of-alcohol-duty-rates-and-reliefs#summary-of-impacts
The Government will evaluate the impact of the new rates and structures three years after the changes took effect on 1 August 2023.