Duty Rates!!!

We all have a little moan about prices, inflations on the up, wages remaining low etc etc However on the booze trade were more to moan than most, why well we just need a fairer duty on wine, we need lower taxation, the beer industry won concessions last time round with a one penny pint reduction at the budget and spirits were frozen but wine went up yet again.

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.

Last Updated: 03/09/2014

Author: Mitchells Wine