UK business-rates discount favours alcohol-selling venues

Where things stand

The topic centres on a 20 percent business-rates reduction in England that, as reported by the Guardian, favours venues selling alcohol over those that do not. The Guardian describes the measure — which includes a £100m giveaway — as one of Andy Burnham's first steps as prime minister. Because eligibility is tied to the sale of alcohol, pubs and bars stand to benefit while cafes and comparable premises fall outside the scheme. The dispute now running is over that boundary. Cafe owners in England say their exclusion is unfair, given they operate in the same hospitality market as the venues receiving the discount. At the same time, the relief's practical value is being questioned by some of its intended beneficiaries: landlords told the Guardian that high operating costs outweigh the savings the reduction would deliver. Details of the scheme's scope and timetable beyond what the Guardian has reported remain unconfirmed.

Business rates are the tax levied on commercial property in England, calculated from a property's rateable value, and they form one of the larger fixed costs for shops, pubs, restaurants and cafes. Successive governments have used targeted discounts and reliefs to lower bills for parts of the retail and hospitality sector, which makes the question of who qualifies politically contentious. The measure at issue here is a 20 percent reduction, reported by the Guardian to include a £100m giveaway, whose eligibility is drawn around venues that sell alcohol. That design line separates pubs and bars from cafes and similar businesses that operate in the same sector but do not hold a drinks trade. The Guardian attributes the policy to Andy Burnham in his capacity as prime minister.