Duty Rates!!!
MP's are often completely oblivious that consumption of alcohol has gone down and that 40% of all alcohol duty across the EU is paid by UK consumers. In fact in this country we pay more in alcohol duty than Germany, France, Poland, Italy & Spain combined, we pay over £12 billion a year!
Perhaps we worry too much about the car manufacturers, steel works and many others than the fortune of the wine supplier.
- Pint Beer/Lager 5% Duty 53p Vat 11p Total 64p
- Bottle Wine under 15% ABV Duty £2.05, Vat 41p Total £2.46, so when you buy wine 3 for a tenner you've paid 87p for your wine including bottle, label, cap, carton, delivery & profit.
- Bottle Spirit at 40% vol, Duty £7.90, Vat £1.58 Total £9.49, Asda sell one at £10 so you've paid 51p for it.
I'm not saying prices should plummet but if we have a few years of no duty rises, this would enable some people to not have to buy the cheapest but open a much wider range of quality drinks that are affordable!
Another point is that there is not VAT on food well that's if you buy it from a shop or supermarket, but go to the pub for lunch and you pay 20% which may count for 10,000 pubs closing in the last 10 years. Look round here, batemoor, Jordanthorpe, Magpie, Greenhillmoor & Bradway.
Also the coalition have brought in a late night levy, licensing authorities can charge up to £4,000 a year if they open after midnight, so a pub who only wants late nights say Friday/Saturday are paying for that privledge. Just to say many local authorities have not adapted this policy.
So let's hope one day we can enjoy a “reit good pint” in a pub that isn't four times that of the off-licence or supermarket prices and that wine prices remain stable for a long time and people can enjoy the pleasure of a decent bottle of red.
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