Skip to main content
Site logo

Main navigation

  • Home
  • News
  • Meet your MP
  • Events
  • In Parliament
  • Craig's Business Grant Survey
  • Craig's Business Forum
  • Campaign Responses
  • Coronavirus Advice
  • Contact
Site logo

Beer and Alcohol Duty

  • Tweet

Thank you for contacting me about alcohol and beer duty.

In 2013, the Government took the decision to end the beer duty escalator, and beer duty has been frozen or cut several times since then. Duty on spirits has been frozen over the past two years. As a result of these changes, a typical pint is cheaper than it would have been had these measures not been introduced. I share your concern about the future of pubs and the hardship caused by the coronavirus outbreak. The steps taken by HMRC to make it easier to claim back the duty on any beer thrown away as a result of pub closures were a timely and sensible intervention.

I welcomed the announcement that for only the second time in 20 years every alcohol duty has been frozen, meaning that this freeze covers duty on spirits, beer, wine, and cider.

I also welcome the temporary cut to VAT from 20 per cent to 5 per cent for all food and non-alcoholic drinks, which initially applied from 15 July 2020 to 12 January 2021, but has been extended to 31 March 2021. This will continue to support restaurants, pubs, bars, cafés and similar premises across the UK. The Eat Out to Help Out scheme has supported thousands of businesses and help protect the jobs of over a million employees. Pubs, restaurants and others that participated will be fully reimbursed for the discount by the Government.

I want to see the Government continue to support pubs and keep costs down for consumers. Any decision to modify alcohol duty in the future is a matter for the Treasury. I have ensured my colleagues are aware of the points you raise and reminded them of the importance of local pubs in our communities. There is a broad recognition of the need to reform the current duty system to support the alcoholic drinks and pubs sector in the longer term, and on 1 October, a call for evidence for reform of Alcohol Duty was published.

Beer Duty Suspension (Producers)

My understanding is that Beer Duty doesn’t always have to be paid to HMRC immediately, and that an application can be made to HMRC before duty becomes payable in these cases. These suspensions can be granted if, for example, beer is held post-production on your registered premises in duty suspension, has been sent to other registered premises approved to receive beer in duty suspension, has been sent to an excise warehouse approved to hold beer in duty suspension for certain purposes, or has been sent to a registered beer packager. There are strict rules governing these suspensions so I would suggest directly contacting HRMC to discuss these options, or identifying specific criteria at https://www.gov.uk/guidance/beer-duty. 

Thank you again for taking the time to contact me.

Craig Whittaker MP

January 2021
 

Campaign Responses

  • Archived Campaign Responses
  • Abortion: Disability-Selective Abortions (EDM 521)
  • Abortion: 'DIY' Abortions
  • Abortion and Foetal Pain: EDM 1340
  • Access to the Countryside
  • Aid: Girls in Crisis
  • Aid: Parliamentary Scrutiny
  • Aid Spending
  • Animal Experiments
  • Animals as Sentient Beings
  • Arms Sales to Israel
  • Arthritis: 'Impossible to Ignore' (Versus Arthritis)
  • Assisted Suicide
  • Asylum Seekers: Various Issues
  • Badger Cull
  • Beer and Alcohol Duty
  • Black Lives Matter
  • Brexit: Food Poverty and UKGT
  • Brexit: Medical Supplies and Scientific Co-operation (including Galileo)
  • Brexit: UK-EU Travel
  • Build Back Better
  • Building Our Way Out (Shelter)
  • Cancer
  • Channel Crossings: Ending People Trafficking
  • Children's Well-being ('Good Childhood' Report)
  • China: Persecution of Uyghur Muslims
  • Cladding (McPartland Amendment)
  • Cleaner Air
  • Climate and Ecological Emergency Bill
  • Coronavirus: People with Disabilities
  • Coronavirus: Test and Trace
  • Cycling and Walking: Update
  • Disposable Barbecues
  • Divorce Law Reform: Updated September 2020
  • Domestic Abuse Bill
  • Domestic Abuse: Migrants
  • Domestic Homicide
  • Domestic Abuse: Universal Credit
  • Duplicated Animal Tests (REACH)
  • Early Years Funding
  • Environment Bill (Updated)
  • Evictions of Palestinians in Disputed Territories (EDM 529)
  • Export of Riot Control Equipment to the US
  • Fox Hunting
  • Fuel Duty and Prices
  • Gender Recognition Act: Update
  • Green and Fair Recovery
  • HS2 and the Environment
  • Heat Pumps (Updated)
  • Hedgehogs
  • Homelessness: Crisis and Centrepoint
  • Homelessness: Social Housing (Shelter)
  • Horse Tethering
  • Human Rights Defenders
  • IVF
  • Immigration: Detention, Visas and Other Issues
  • Immigration Health Charge
  • Immigration: Points-based System
  • Israel: Peace Agreements with Bahrain and the UAE
  • Jagtar Singh Johal
  • Legal Aid: Asylum and Immigration Cases
  • Local Electricity Bill
  • Local Housing Allowance/Shared Accommodatio Rate
  • Microchipping Cats
  • MPs' Pay Update
  • Nazanin-Zaghari Ratcliffe and Anoosheh Ashoori: Update
  • Neonicotinoids
  • NHS Pay
  • NHS 'Privatisation'
  • Off-payroll Working (IR35)
  • Oceans: Global Action
  • Onshore Wind Energy: Update June 2020
  • Overseas Operations Bill
  • Peat Burning
  • Planning for the Future: CPRE and Other Campaigns
  • Planning for the Future: Woodlands
  • Pregnancy and Maternity Redundancy Bill
  • Prohibition of Nuclear Weapons Treaty and Trident
  • Radiotherapy 4 Life
  • Rail: Policy and Investment
  • Rape Crisis Services and Domestic and Sexual Abuse
  • Reception Baseline Assessment (Primary Schools)
  • Rivers - Plastic Pollution
  • School Breakfast Bill
  • Sea Blasts
  • Sewage (Inland Waters) Bill
  • Social Care
  • Social Care, Key Workers and the National Living Wage
  • Social Housing
  • Sunday Trading
  • Sunscreen and VAT
  • Supertrawlers and Sustainable Fishing
  • Support for People with Terminal Illness
  • Trade Bill: Anti-genocide Amendment
  • Trade Deals: Farming and Food Standards
  • Trade Deals: Food Standards
  • Trade Deals: NHS - New Clause 17 and Lords 11
  • Trade Deals: Parliamentary Scrutiny
  • Trophy Hunting Update
  • Transport Investment (#transformtransport)
  • Trespass Laws and the Right to Roam
  • Two-wheel Powered Vehicles
  • UK Internal Market Bill
  • UK Internal Market Bill: International Law
  • Visa-free Work Permits for Touring Artists
  • Whipping of Race Horses
  • Wildlife Licensing
  • Yemen: UK Involvement (Updated)
  • Youth Services

Craig Whittaker MP MP for Calder Valley

Footer

  • About RSS
  • Accessibility
  • Cookies
  • Privacy
  • About Craig
  • Campaign Responses
  • In Parliament
Site logoThis website is funded by the Independent Parliamentary Standards Authority (IPSA) for the purpose of assisting Craig Whittaker MP in the performance of their Parliamentary duties.
Copyright 2021 Craig Whittaker MP MP for Calder Valley. All rights reserved.
Powered by Bluetree