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Excise Duties: Alcoholic Drinks

Volume 479: debated on Monday 21 July 2008

To ask the Chancellor of the Exchequer (1) whether he has made an assessment of the effects on public houses of (a) past and (b) future increases in levels of taxes on alcohol; (218436)

(2) whether he has conducted or evaluated research on the possible relationship between levels of duty on alcohol and the rate of closure of public houses.

As part of the Budget process, I met representatives from the trade, including the British Beer and Pub Association, to listen to their views on the current situation and the cost pressures in the industry.

As with all tax policy decisions, we will be monitoring the impact of alcohol duty increases on a range of factors.