It was great to visit the Sir Walter Raleigh Pub in East Budleigh again. I first visited in April 2022, shortly after it was reopened by the community and I've been back a few times since. The pub, restaurant and café has gone from strength to strength, bringing local people together with excellent food & drink.
Nationally, the pub industry is continuing to face challenges, not least through higher energy and food costs. As chair of the cross-party group in Parliament for hospitality and tourism, I’m pressing the government to further support the hospitality industry at the upcoming Spring Budget by permanently reducing the VAT rate on hospitality businesses to 12.5%. These measures would build on the 75% business rates relief for retail, hospitality and leisure firms that the government has extended to 2025. I’ve also called on the government to increase the draught relief on beer to 20% whilst freezing wider alcohol duty to support community pubs and independent breweries.
I would like to thank everyone involved in the Sir Walter Raleigh for their kind invitation. I hope to catch up again soon and I will do everything I can to support them as MP.