Pub landlords bar Labour MPs in response to rising taxes

A growing number of publicans across the UK have taken the step of barring Labour MPs from their venues following the autumn Budget, saying the hospitality sector is getting the short end of the stick in a cost-of-living  squeeze.

The campaign began last Friday at the Old Thatch pub in Dorset, run by landlord Andy Lennox, and has already spread to around 50 pubs nationwide. Stickers that read “No Labour MPs” alongside the hashtag #taxedout have been placed in windows and doors.

The frustration comes at rising business rates which were announced in last month’s Budget.

Ash Corbett-Collins, chairman of CAMRA, said: “Publicans and pubgoers are rightly angry at the Government, after the disastrous Budget and botched business rates ‘reforms’ which will see many pubs with higher bills than before.”

Budget 2025 recap: what went wrong?

In her Budget speech, Chancellor Rachel Reeves promised that small retail, hospitality, and leisure businesses would benefit from the lowest permanent business rates since 1991.

The Budget confirmed permanently lower business rates for more than 750,000 UK businesses and higher rates for high-value properties. However, revisions to premises valuations have meant that many pubs are now facing significantly higher bills.

At the same time, alcohol duty is set to rise in line with RPI inflation from 1 February 2026, with small producer relief uprated to maintain relative reductions.

While Reeves hailed the Budget as a “win for the sector,” operators, trade bodies, and producers have said that rising bills and higher duties will squeeze margins, accelerate closures, and leave many pubs struggling under structural cost pressures.

Rising business rates

UKHospitality estimates that the average pub’s business rates will rise by £1,400 next year, with projected increases of £4,500 by 2027/28 and £7,000 by 2028/29. Over three years, that adds up to an extra £12,900, roughly a 76% jump, hitting pubs already grappling with rising costs.

As well as this, pub bosses are increasingly concerned that higher business rates could lead to as many as 15,000 job losses and hundreds of closures.

The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) is calling for a 30% business rates relief package specifically for pubs.

“Pubs before the Budget, were already closing at a high rate. Now, after a big hike in business rates bills from the Government, we could see the rate rocketing upwards, with pubs simply not being able to afford their bills,” said Corbett-Collins.

The news followed warnings from the live music and events sector that rising business rates could force hundreds of small music and event venues to shut down.

Pubs are facing pressure not just from this year’s Budget, but from rising costs over the past year. In 2024, higher National Insurance contributions and rising labour costs had already squeezed profits.

Many feel as though the promised support for high streets has yet to materialise.

 

 

 

 

 

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