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Alcohol duty freeze generates £67m for UK Treasury
The decision to freeze duty on wine and spirits in the UK has given the Treasury a £67 million (US$88.91m) boost in four months, according to Her Majesty’s Revenue & Customs (HMRC).
A duty freeze on wine and spirits last November generated £67m for the UK Treasury
In November last year, UK chancellor Philip Hammond announced a freeze on wine, spirits and beer duty in the autumn Budget.
The statistics show that from December 2017 to April 2018, wine and spirits duties rose to £3.291 billion – a 2% increase from £3.224 billion during the same period the previous year.
When beer and cider are factored into the equation, the total increase in alcohol duties paid to the Treasury was £86m.
The cap on wine and spirits duty in the November Budget meant a saving of 31p on an average priced bottle of spirits, 11p on sparkling wine and 8p per bottle of still wine.
The move from the government followed calls from industry trade bodies such as the Wine and Spirit Association (WSTA), as well as businesses and consumers.
Miles Beale, chief executive of the WSTA, said: “We have always said a freeze to alcohol duty is a win/win for both the Treasury, the wine and spirit trade and consumers.
“We hope the latest windfall to Treasury coffers coming from the Budget freeze encourages the chancellor to continue to stay in touch with what consumers want and support an industry which is proving to be a real asset to British business by rebalancing the UK’s excessive duty rates in this year’s Budget.”