Kate writes a bi-weekly column for the Burton Mail. This column was originally featured in the 11th August print edition.
In Burton, we know that pubs are at the heart of our community and provide great cultural value to the residents they serve. Many of us will have seen the devastating images of the Crooked House Pub in the Black Country completely destroyed by fire, and a community centre, going back hundreds of years, now reduced to rubble.
This is an utterly tragic situation and I welcome the calls by the Mayor of the West Midlands, Andy Street, that the pub should be rebuilt “brick by brick”. The sad events of last week must not mean that the Crooked House is consigned to history, but is restored and that our pubs like this are protected by the community and all who enjoy a great British pub.
Last week, in more positive news, the Government’s new Brexit Pubs Guarantee kicked in. These changes to Alcohol Duties will create a level playing field for our public houses with supermarkets, and means that the duty paid on pints in pubs will be up to 11p cheaper.
The new Small Producer’s Tax Relief will be of particular benefit to smaller craft producers worth £100 million a year. This will apply to all containers over 20 litres, a threshold that I campaigned successfully for the Treasury to lower to support our smaller breweries.
These changes will bring big advantages to smaller brewers and help Burton’s microbrewers. But they are only possible now we are outside the EU and will help to protect the price of your pint in the pub. In Burton and Uttoxeter, the home of British brewing, this is a big boost to our largest industry and to our pubs, which we know are at the heart of local communities across the country.
