The Chancellor gave drinkers a lift today by saying that the anticipated increases in alcohol duty will be cancelled as part of a budget that included £45 billion in tax savings.
According to the Treasury, the freeze will save £600 million, or the price of 7p of beer, 4p of cider, 38p of wine, and £1.35 of spirits a bottle.
Experts warned that the previous chancellor Rishi Sunak’s decision to tax alcoholic drinks depending on their alcohol content in February might have cost wine consumers alone up to £300 million more in additional expenditure.
Today, Kwasi Kwarteng, who took over for him, said: “We also want to modernise the way we tax alcoholic beverages. Industry worries regarding the upcoming changes have been heard by me. I shall thus propose an 18-month wine duty transitional plan.
“To aid smaller brewers, I will also expand draught relief to smaller kegs of 20 litres and more. Additionally, we will not allow alcohol duty rates to increase in pace with RPI at this tough period.
The anticipated hikes in the tariff rates for beer, cider, wine, and spirits have all been cancelled, I can now report.
Additionally, the Chancellor said that foreign tourists will be able to purchase without paying VAT.