A pub landlord has been forced to start closing up two hours earlier than usual due to soaring extra costs after Rachel Reeves’ tax raid. Brian Whiting, who owns several pubs in the South East, now calls last orders at 9pm during the week and closes the kitchens at 8pm to offset an extra £190,000 in annual bills. He told The Telegraph: “I’ve been going on my own for 25 years, and I think this has become the hardest now for hospitality it’s ever been.”
Phil Thorley, who owns the pub group Thorley Taverns, said he was considering similar measures as the increase to employers’ National Insurance Contributions (NICs) alone would cost his business an extra £400,000 every year. He told the outlet: “That’s eight grand a week in perpetuity. So we’re going to have to make changes.”
In the wake of the October Budget, roughly 29% of hospitality business owners said they planned to cut their opening hours due to rising costs, according to a survey by trade organisation UK Hospitality.
The threshold at which employers’ NICs are paid was lowered under Ms Reeves from £9,100 to £5,000, and the amount paid was increased.
Critics argued that this disproportionately affects the hospitality industry because it employs a large number of part-time and low-paid staff.
Mr Whiting said: “That drop in the threshold of NI has massively hit me. I’m very proud that we’re often the first job for a lot of youngsters. But is it a false economy now? Once upon a time, it was good value.
“We weighed up that they’re not going to be as good as older people because they need to learn, and they might not have the confidence.”
On top of this, minimum wage rose by 6.7% and the amount of business rates relief offered to smaller retail and hospitality companies fell.
Mr Whiting added: “Now, when their wages have gone dramatically up, you’re getting much more value for money as an employer with employees who are a bit older.”
A Government spokesman told the outlet: “We are a pro-business government, and we know the vital importance of pubs to local communities and the wider economy.
“Which is why we are supporting them with business rates relief, a 1p cut to alcohol duty on draught pints, capping corporation tax and are protecting the smallest businesses from the employer National Insurance rise – which is helping to fund the NHS.”
