Pub landlords across the UK have said the Government’s U-turn on business rates do not go far enough and are concerned about their future, with one saying the change amounts to a “political stunt”.
This week, Labour announced pubs and live music venues would get 15 per cent business rate relief in 2026-27, with their bills being frozen in real terms for a further two years.
Dan Tomlinson, treasury minister, said the package would be worth £1,650 for the average pub. It follows backlash from decisions made in the Budget last year which meant many pubs would see a major hike to their business rates bills.
Yet despite the Government rowing back on previous announcements, a number of pub landlords told The i Paper they still have major concerns.
‘I don’t know if I’ll see the year out’
Gary Meads, 56, has been in the pub business his whole life, having been born in the upstairs of the Coach and Horses Inn in Weatheroak Hill, near Birmingham.
His parents took on the pub in 1968 before it was passed over to Gary with his 89-year-old father still popping in once a week.
Gary feels pubs have not been respected by the government in the past 10 years, describing the changes that were announced in the Budget as “horrific” with pressures on the trade becoming “too great”.
Since April 2025, national insurance payments rose by 1.2 percentage points for employers, from 13.8 per cent to 15 per cent. The secondary earnings threshold – the level at which employers start making NICs – was also reduced from £9,100 to £5,000.
Gary Meads, doesn’t know if his pub near Birmingham, will make it to the end of the yearFor Gary, this change, coupled with the changes to business rates which will see him paying an extra £2,000 in tax a year, means he is uncertain of the future of his pub.
“The NICs has cost me £22,000 a year, that coupled with the business rate relief disappearing, it’s effectively taken my wage off me.
“I now have to take money out the business, which it can’t afford, to take a wage. I’ve got four boys at home. My wife works in the NHS, and we need money to live,” Gary said.
He explained how rising energy costs alongside all the other changes have “obliterated” his margins, making just £3,000 last year in profit which had to be paid to HMRC to settle a debt.
“To get back on an even keel, we need help and [the 15 per cent relief] is more a political stunt, which has been backed up by customers coming into my pub basically saying: ‘Well, you’ve got all this relief now, so you’re going to bring the price of beer down.’
“I don’t know if I’ll see this year out. And that’s the honest truth,” Gary said.
‘There is less and less money to be made’
Jo Loring (right) pictured with this son in his pub in NewcastleJo Loring, 62, has owned his pub called the Cosy Dove in Newcastle for 10 years, with his son now taking over the reins and running it day-to-day.
Jo said his rateable value – an assessment of a pub’s annual open-market rental value – is set to increase from £24,000 to £48,000.
Prior to the 15 per cent relief, he had calculated he had to pay £8,000 more per year in business rates.
“When you’ve got to find [an extra] £8,000 from somewhere, along with the rise in national insurance, the rise in employment wages, landlords are having to put 50p, 60p, 70p on a pint.
“And the trouble is when you are in an economy that’s not growing. A lot of my customers are in the same boat, all their costs are rising, so they have less disposable income, so when they come out, they haven’t got as much money to spend,” Jo explained.
He felt the amount of responsibility pub landlords must take on is not recognised by those outside of the profession.
“You’re the health and safety officer, the HR department, the marketing department, the sales department, the compliance department, you’ve got so many things you must do every day in running a pub, it’s a lot of work, and a lot of expense. I don’t think a lot of people necessarily know that that’s the case.
“More and more pressures are put on us; there is less and less money to be made. You begin to look at it at the end of the day, and think is all this hard work worth it for the responsibility you have as a pub landlord?”
‘We are massively overtaxed’
Ian Hillman says VAT is the ‘biggest killer’ for pubsIan Hillman, 38, has owned The Goats Head in Abotts Bromley for two and a half years and has seen his business rates increase by 62 per cent, giving him a bill of nearly £7,000 a year – pre the 15 per cent relief.
“It’s driving me mad that they’re advertising it as a win because it’s a 15 per cent relief on an already inflated bill.
“With the relief, it will only cost us now probably £700 but that’s £700 more than we were paying. Alcohol duties have increased, minimum wage has increased, national insurance has increased, it’s getting too much,” Ian said.
The landlord said he will absolutely have to increase his prices to maintain his profit levels, which were “virtually nothing” anyway.
“I’m very concerned [about the future], because we’re on the cusp of having a refurb, and part of that refurb means we’ll have a higher rent from the brewery, because they’re releasing £100,000 to give us a bit of a revamp.
“Obviously they’ve got to get a return on their investment, so it means our rent goes up. So, that’s another increase for us, as well as all the other taxes,” he explained.
Ian said the “biggest killer” was the 20 per cent VAT which pubs must charge on food and drink consumed on their premises.
He added: “The Government don’t seem to consider the social aspect of a pub, the mental health aspect of a pub.
“We have a guy called John come in, he’s in his 80s. He’s got terminal cancer, no partner, no children, he lives on his own. We’re the only people he sees when he comes in here.
“We’ve got another customer that’s lost his wife, he’s in his mid-60s and again has no family living locally. He comes in for the social aspect, because he knows that his neighbours will be here. Pubs are the centre of the community.”
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