The decision by UK Chancellor Philip Hammond to freeze wine and spirit duty in the country’s Budget has been ‘warmly welcomed’ by the Wine and Spirit Trade Association.
The group, which represents wine and spirit producers, said that the Chancellor has ‘chosen to listen to the WSTA’s call to support our great British industry and British consumers with a festive friendly freeze on February 1st, 2018’.
It said that the Chancellor’s decision is likely to save the wine and spirits trade £247 million, and help to support the 554,000 or so jobs in the sector.
Festive Spirit
“We are pleased that the Chancellor has found his festive spirit and listened to the call from the WSTA and its members and has frozen wine and spirit duty,” said Miles Beale, chief executive of the Wine & Spirit Trade Association.
“He has shown the Government is in touch with what consumers want and is supporting an industry which is proving to be a real asset to British business. He has recognised that rebalancing the UK’s excessive duty rates is a win/win for both the Treasury, the wine and spirit trade – not to mention consumers.”
After a freeze in wine duty in the 2015 Budget, wine duty income increased by £136m (+3.6%) the following year, and after a 2% cut in spirits duty that year, spirits duty income increased by £124m (+4.1%) over the same period.
© 2017 European Supermarket Magazine – your source for the latest retail news. Article by Stephen Wynne-Jones. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: The European Supermarket Magazine.
