A leading restaurant and pub owner has criticised the government’s business rates relief, saying it “leaves the sector out to dry” and fails to address the real issues facing hospitality.
Speaking from the Old Thatch in Wimborne, Dorset, Andy Lennox said the 15 per cent reduction in business rates was little more than a “sticking plaster.”
He argued that proper reform, including a VAT rate aligned with Europe at 13 per cent, is needed to help pubs, restaurants, and cafes survive and thrive.
Mr Lennox said: “We really wanted to lift the ban because we genuinely want to engage with Labour MPs more. But sadly, it only applied to the pub sector.
“If the rate relief package had covered the whole sector, we might have been able to lift the ban and have a proper conversation about tax reform and VAT reform. Unfortunately, that wasn’t the case.
“And it’s not just business rates that need addressing. Pubs are struggling with many other issues as well.”
“The tax burden on hospitality is too great. Year after year, taxes have increased, squeezing margins. What we need is VAT reform — a rate in line with Europe at 13 per cent.
“The business rates issue was really the straw that broke the camel’s back. It’s welcome that the government is starting to listen, but they’ve largely ignored the vast majority of the sector.
“We stand with the entire hospitality industry hotels, restaurants, and cafes alike. I own both restaurants and pubs, and the irony is that the first place to launch the ‘No Labour MP” campaign was a restaurant.
“For us, the sector is united all for one, one for all. We can’t just be okay while the rest of the sector is left out to dry.
“We need to push the Government to extend rate reform to the whole industry. But let’s be clear: what they announced wasn’t a tax cut; it was simply reducing a bill that was going to rise.
“What we really need is VAT reform at 13 per cent, in line with Europe, where hospitality is valued. The business rates relief has been labelled a ‘sticking plaster’ and rightly so.
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“That 15 per cent reduction doesn’t change much in real terms for pubs. Essentially, it’s a tax bill we weren’t paying anyway.
“So while the Government has brought it back in line with where it was before, it hasn’t solved the actual problem: we need proper tax reform.
“Over the last 15 years, the hospitality industry has professionalised massively.
“We’ve upscaled our workforce, grown substantially, and now employ over 3 million people, making us the UK’s third-largest employer.
“Tourism and the wider economy rely on us. But margins are now dangerously squeezed where we used to make 10–15 per cent, we’re now down to 3–4 per cent.
“This is approaching unsafe levels of profitability. We need a proper conversation about tax reform.
“The ban remains in place, and we will continue to call for these reforms to be extended across the wider hospitality sector.
“VAT reform is key it allows us to reinvest in our venues, our workforce, and ultimately drives the economy. Hospitality is the engine room of the nation.
“Think about it: every major life event revolves around hospitality.
“Promotions, celebrations, weddings, funerals they all involve pubs, restaurants, and cafes. When hospitality thrives, the nation thrives.
“There’s still a lot of work to do to protect this vital sector.”
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