James Staughton, Chairman of the Independent Family Brewers of Britain comments: “It is fantastic to see the Government recognise the importance of British beer and pubs. George Osborne’s announcement to reduce beer duty by 1p per pint and scrap the beer duty escalator is great news for the British brewing industry, particularly Family Brewers for whom brewing is the mainstay of their business. This news also impacts the 38,000 people currently employed with the Family Brewers, who rely on the brewing industry for their livelihood.
“We are grateful to the 100,000 pub goers who signed the e-petition to scrap the escalator and the support of local MPs for our campaign.
“Beer duty has increased by a massive 42 per cent since 2008 so this is welcome relief from the tax burden Family Brewers face. Family Brewers’ members and employees contributed £496.5m to the UK economy last year between excise duty and VAT.
“I am confident that this move will help stimulate economic growth and employment in our industry.”