Hospitality unites behind Tom Kerridge’s VAT campaign
Chef and restaurateur Tom Kerridge is urging the hospitality sector to unite behind a campaign to reduce VAT to 10%, with more than 100,000 people signing a petition in its first three days.
The #VATsTheProblem petition, which calls for hospitality VAT to be reduced from 20% to 10%, reached the milestone in under 72 hours, according to campaign organisers.
The initiative is being spearheaded by Kerridge and is supported by UK Hospitality, the British Beer and Pub Association, the British Institute of Innkeeping and CODE Hospitality.
Campaign organisers said the level of support demonstrated the strength of feeling across the sector for a lower rate of VAT.
Momentum builds
The campaign is due to launch to consumers on 1 July, with Kerridge encouraging hospitality businesses to continue promoting the petition in the run-up to the date.
Operators are being asked to sign the petition, share it with staff and other venues, and promote it through email communications, social media channels and websites. Campaign materials are also available through a dedicated toolkit.
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Commenting on the response so far, Kerridge said: “What a start to the campaign, but it is just the start. More than 100,000 people backing 10% VAT for hospitality in just three days shows the strength of feeling across hospitality, and that number will only continue to grow.
“Hospitality businesses, please keep sharing the campaign with your teams and other venues in your area to get them to support, too.
“Let’s get this number as high as possible before the 1 July, and show just how much hospitality needs a VAT cut to 10%.”
Sector-wide push
The #VATsTheProblem campaign is a sector-wide initiative calling for VAT on hospitality to be reduced from 20% to 10%.
According to organisers, Kerridge is working to unite the hospitality sector behind the proposal, with backing from a number of trade bodies and industry organisations, including UKHospitality, the British Beer and Pub Association, the British Institute of Innkeeping and CODE Hospitality.
The consumer-facing phase of the campaign is scheduled to begin on 1 July.
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