DECEMBER/JANUARY 2001 No 96
Newsletter of the Potteries Branch of the Campaign for Real Ale
BUY YOUR OWN, MR. BROWN!
William Hague’s famous fourteen pints a day is dwarfed by the nine million pints a day Gordon Brown takes in tax from Britain’s beer drinkers.
Figures released by the Brewers and Licensed Retailers Association (BLRA) and Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) show that when duty and VAT are added together, the Chancellor takes a third of every pint in tax. That adds up to nine million of the 27 million pints bought in the UK every day.
"BRITAIN’S HIGH BEER TAXES CAUSES BOOTLEGGING AND OTHER CRIMINAL ACTIVITY"
In response, the BLRA and CAMRA are launching a major national campaign, which will run from now until the budget next year, to focus consumer attention on the amount of beer tax they pay every time they buy a pint. The campaign aims to involve every pub and beer drinker in Britain. People can vote in a national e-poll on whether they think beer taxes are too high and sign an c-petition to support a campaign to bring beer taxes down.
Every year, Gordon Brown collects more than
3.2 billion pints in tax. That’s enough beer to fill more than one and a half Domes, just over three Wembley Stadiums or 21 Albert Halls.On duty alone, Gordon Brown now charges 34 pence a pint. That compares with 5 pence in France and 3 pence in Germany and Spain for a similar pint. When duty and VAT are added together, the Chancellor is now taking more than
£5 billion a year in taxes on beer. That is the equivalent of £228 a year from the pocket of every beer drinker in the UK.‘EVERY TIME YOU BUY A PINT THE GOVERNMENT TAKES A THIRD IN TAX'
Rob Hayward, Chief Executive of the BLRA said, "Now we know why Gordon loves his beer. Every time you buy a pint, the Government takes a third in tax. The Chancellor is the nine million pint a day man. As an industry, we’re calling on our customers to tell us what they think about the level of tax they pay on their beer. Their voice is a vital part of our campaign to bring beer taxes down."
Mike Benner, Head of Campaigns for CAMRA said, "We are calling on Britain’s fifteen million beer drinkers to stand up and be counted in the battle for a fair deal on beer tax. High beer tax is not only damaging brewers, pubs and the farmers who grow the raw materials for beer, it is also leading to rural pub closures and the loss of important centres of the community."