Cheaper pints for Brits as Rishi Sunak freezes alcohol duty and extends VAT cut

BRITS are set for cheaper pints in the pub after Rishi Sunak announced he is freezing alcohol duty and extending a VAT cut for the hospitality industry.

The Chancellor froze tax on alcohol for the second year in a row in his Budget today in a bid to boost pub sales for struggling boozers.

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Increases to duty on beer, cider, spirits and wine were scrapped in last year’s Budget for only the second time in 20 years.

It means this is the third time any Chancellor has frozen the duty in two decades.

Alcohol prices usually rise each year in the Budget in line with RPI inflation, which is currently 0.7%, unless the Government freezes or cuts it.

Meanwhile, the Chancellor also confirmed the 5% reduced rate of VAT for the hospitality industry will be extended for six months until the end of September.

He also announced:

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The standard rate won’t be returned to until April next year, with an interim rate of 12.5% for another six months after September.

Speaking today, Mr Sunak said: “This is a tough time for hospitality, so I can confirm that the planned increases in duties for spirits like scotch whisky, wine, cider and beer will all be cancelled.

“All alcohol duties frozen for the second year in a row – only the third time in two decades.”

The Sun first revealed how the Chancellor would continue the VAT (value added tax) cut earlier this week to help save jobs in struggling industries.

Mr Sunak slashed VAT from 20% to 5% for food, drink and holiday businesses as part of his mini-Budget on July 8.

Wetherspoon slashed prices by up to 28% in July 2020 following the tax break, with pints starting at £1.29.

But businesses don’t have to pass on VAT cuts to punters.

The average price of a pint in the UK is currently £3.81, according to the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA).

Meanwhile, the Wine and Spirit Trade Association (WSTA) estimates the average price of a bottle of wine in the UK is currently £5.93.

Conservative MPs last week urged the Chancellor to cut beer duty to help the struggling pub and hospitality sector survive.

Pubs are expected to reopen from April 12 at the earliest for outdoor eating and drinking under the Prime Minister Boris Johnson‘s roadmap for leaving lockdown.

Diners and drinkers will be able to head in doors from May 17, as long as coronavirus infection rates and deaths remain low.

The Treasury undertook a review on alcohol duty last year.

Changes to alcohol duty could boost pub sales by 100 million pints a year, the Social Market Foundation said.

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Here’s when you can start booking a table in the pub when lockdown lifts – from Wetherspoons to Greene King.

But customers will have to follow a strict set of rules when pubs and restaurants do open again.

However, the hated 10pm curfew will be scrapped and drinkers won’t have to order a substantial meal with their alcohol.

This post first appeared on thesun.co.uk