Mick Skerratt, the owner of Exeter Gin, has expressed concern regarding potential increases in excise duty on spirits in the upcoming Budget. Following previous increases — over 10% by the Conservative government in August 2023 and an additional 3.65% by Labour in 2024 — Skerratt indicated that any further tax hikes would adversely affect his business and customers, particularly amid rising production costs.
Skerratt stated that such increases could severely pressure his operation, impacting profitability and potentially leading to higher prices for consumers. He criticized the spirits industry for being viewed as a source of revenue for the government, emphasizing the ongoing cost of living crisis and questioning how much consumers can afford to pay for spirits.
The All-Party Parliamentary Group (APPG) on UK Spirits reported that the number of distilleries in the UK has grown significantly over the past seven years, from 350 to 1,050. The group noted that excise duty constitutes approximately 70% of the average price for a bottle of spirits sold in the UK. Carolyn Harris, the APPG chairwoman and a Labour MP, has urged for a complete freeze on excise duty in the upcoming Budget, arguing that failure to do so could jeopardize the industry and lead to job losses.
Harris emphasized that preserving current duty rates would allow distillers to stabilize and potentially thrive. Moreover, she pointed out that while beer duty has been consistently frozen or reduced in recent years, spirits have not received similar treatment, which industry advocates have criticized as inequitable.
Alan Collyer, owner of Exeter Brewery, highlighted that changes to beer duty do not adequately address the broader challenges faced by small businesses. He suggested that minor adjustments in alcohol duty are insufficient to draw customers back to pubs, especially when comparing supermarket alcohol prices to rising costs within the pub industry.
Source: https://www.bbc.com/news/articles/cn817gl7q90o?at_medium=RSS&at_campaign=rss