Pub and bar-owners will be listening in this afternoon as chancellor Philip Hammond will delivers the last government budget before the UK leaves the European Union.

The autumn statement has been brought forward this year to avoid clashing with the final stages of Brexit negotiations in November, and will take place at 15:30 GMT.

Industry bodies like UKHospitality have warned that hundreds of thousands of jobs could be put at risk if special relief isn’t given to the industry.

The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) is already planning a day of lobbying with thousands of group members on Tuesday morning where delegates will hold meetings with MPs throughout the day to argue the case for more beer tax freezes and business rates relief.

From business rates to inflation, here’s what to expect from this year’s budget.

Business rates

Hammond is set to announce £900 million of business rates relief for around half a million small retailers.

This would mean a typical pub in Sheffield with a rateable value of £37,750 will save £6,178 next year, according to the Treasury.

The chancellor will hope the move gives some short-term relief for struggling retailers, and while the news has been welcomed by those in the industry, many have said the relief won’t help independent businesses in the long-run.

UKHospitality boss Kate Nicholls said the relief would only act as a “sticking plaster” for small businesses, and hoped it would be followed up by “root-and-branch reform”.

Brigid Simmonds, chair of the British Beer and Pub Association, warned that almost 4,000 pub workers could lose their jobs if the Chancellor does not extend the £1,000 sector relief rate to include the pub sector.

“Pubs pay more than £500 million in business rates and 2.8% of the total bill, although they only equate to 0.5% of turnover,” she said.

Sin taxes

Sin taxes are a regular fixture in the budget.

Duty on beer, cider, wine and spirits did not rise in keeping with inflation in last year’s statement, although the chancellor did place special measures on high-alcohol, low-price white cider.

Hammond cited tighter household budgets and declining pub sales as key reasons behind the decision, which generated an extra £380 million in duty payments between February and August, up 6% on the same period the year before.

“Recognising the pressure on household budgets and backing our Great British Pubs, duties on other ciders, wine, spirits and on beer will be frozen.”

Unless Hammond explicitly says otherwise, the current levels of alcohol duty are likely to rise based on the rate of inflation, around 3% per year until 2022. This means people will pay 7p more for an average bottle of wine, and 26p on a bottle of spirits.

The WSTA has asked the Chancellor to freeze alcohol duty again this year.

Wedding bonus?

One measure that could provide an additional boost to the on-trade is a planned review of wedding laws. Hammond is set to announce that weddings can legally be held outside.

Currently, venues need to identify a specific room where a wedding ceremony will take place in order to get a license. The average wedding in the UK costs just over £30,000, according to Bridebook’s National Wedding survey.  The new law would make it easier for more venues like pubs and bars to hold weddings and make more money, but UKHospitality has likened the new policy to “rearranging deck chairs on the Titanic.”

“Enabling more venues to host weddings is something many businesses will appreciate but rather ignores the scale of attention the underlying causes of high street decline urgently needs,” Nicholls said.

“Tinkering will get us nowhere – it’s time for fundamental change to save high streets and allow hospitality to grow and generate prosperity for Britain.”