A pub landlord has lashed out at Labour on GB News after Rachel Reeves is believed to be eyeing up yet another U-turn for her Government.
Amid growing backlash from Britain’s boozers over the threat of booming business rates, GB News understands the Chancellor is gearing up to dial back the business-rate relief for the hospitality industry.
Instead, the relief is expected to be extended in a bid to assist locally-loved pubs up and down the nation – many of which have unleashed fury against the Labour Government.
Growing financial concerns have driven one pub to shut up shop every day since Ms Reeves moved into No11.
In fact, hundreds across Britain went so far as to ban Labour MPs from their establishment as a furious act of retaliation.
Sitting down with GB News’ Anna Riley, Simon Cotton, who is the managing director of the Fat Badger Group across Harrogate, revealed his hestitancy towards the U-turn.
“I’ve had a phone call after a phone call from industry colleagues this week last couple of days,” he said. “It’s slightly good news, but we’re all up in the air and not knowing what’s going on.
He continued: “Yet again, it’s Labour doing a U-turn on something, but there’s no information about it.
‘You wonder what we’re doing it all for,’ Simon Cotton told GB News
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GB NEWS
“What is classed as a pub? This is a pub but we’ve got bedrooms upstairs, so we’re also a hotel. We’ve got a restaurant.
“I’ve had restaurateurs ringing me saying, just think this will include me.
“Nobody knows, but the government have got to do something because this, this business rates hike. Are the reduction in the discounts we’ve had and the revaluation of business as well.
“So it’s like a double whammy.
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“It’s just yet another kick in the kick in the teeth to the hospitality industry that has been struggling since Covid and pre-Covid for years now.”
But Mr Cotton is not the only one casting doubt on Labour’s move.
Speaking to the People’s Channel last week, the Conservative leader hit out at Labour for “hammering” Britain’s pubs amid a reversal of the latest set of hospitality tax hikes.
Mrs Badenoch told GB News Political Editor Christopher Hope: “Labour MPs have come back from Christmas break where they were banned from every single pub in the country, and they suddenly realised that people don’t like them. That’s why they’re pushing for this U-turn.
“Conservatives saw this as soon as it happened. Remember my Budget speech and I talked about how Rachel had done absolutely nothing for pubs?
“Well, the chickens have come home to roost.
“Anyone who is an MP in a rural constituency especially knows that pubs are the lifeblood of so many towns and villages, as well as cities. Some of them have been there for hundreds of years.
“We don’t want to see them disappear. We’ve already lost most butchers in villages and towns, the bakers, most places now just have a pub and a church. We’ve got to do what we can to protect them.”