Pubs, clubs and live music venues in England will be given a 20% cut to business rates from April, which the government estimates will save firms around £1,100 next year.
In his third policy announcement since becoming prime minister, Andy Burnham said: “For too long, governments have stood by while cherished venues have disappeared from our local high streets.”
The cut will cost £100m and will be funded by a review of tax relief on firms such as vape shops which “do not make a positive contribution to local communities”, the government said.
Hospitality bosses welcomed the support, but some pub owners said the package would not go far enough to offset the impact of cost increases elsewhere.
The 20% business rates discount will not apply to the “very largest” live music venues. Details about which businesses are eligible will be announced at Chancellor John Healey’s first Budget in the autumn.
The cut is expected to benefit almost 32,000 venues, the government said.
Iain Hoskins, who owns Ma Pub Group in Liverpool, told the BBC the relief would help “chip away” at rising costs but questioned how many venues would benefit.
It could be “very meaningful”, he said, but “as always, the devil is in the detail”.
His pubs have previously missed out on government business rates support, and “the increases were so huge last year that now we’re sort of chipping away at some of those increases”.
Under previous chancellor Rachel Reeves, the government said last year it would scale back business rate discounts that had been in force since the pandemic and announced that there would be no discount at all from April this year.
That, combined with big upward adjustments to rateable values of pub premises, left landlords with the prospect of much higher rates bills.
Following criticism from the hospitality industry, the government cut business rates for pubs and music venues by 15% earlier in 2026.
The 20% discount will apply on top of the existing support.
Commenting on the cut which comes into effect next year, Steve Perez, founder of soft drinks company Global Brands and an owner of two hotels, said the announcement is “welcome… but this won’t make any material difference to any pub”.
UK Hospitality’s chief executive, Allen Simpson, said Burham’s plans are “a good start” which he said “suggests that his affection for hospitality has survived the trip down the M1”.
But he added that it is “not for everybody in hospitality”.
The change to business rates for some hospitality firms is the latest move in what Burnham hopes will provide “breathing space” for people and businesses.
On Tuesday, the government announced a cut of 5% VAT on electricity bills followed by capping bus fares at £2 in England outside London.
As well as reviewing tax relief on firms such as vape shops in order to fund the rate cut, the government also said it will “crack down” on businesses selling through online marketplaces which “do not comply with their tax obligations”.
The Night Time Industries Association’s chief executive, Michael Kill, said the tax break could provide “meaningful relief to businesses facing sustained cost pressures”.
But he said the sector is waiting for more details while questions remain about the exclusion of the largest live music venues.
The Federation of Small Businesses (FSB) said Thursday’s announcement must be “a downpayment on action that reaches across the small business community”.
FSB policy chief Tina McKenzie, said the plans were encouraging and fix the damage caused by past business rates decisions which are “holding back small business growth and jobs in every postcode”.
Source:
www.bbc.co.uk
