Reeves’ taxes ‘incredibly damaging’ to historic family business September 16, 2025 The tax hikes introduced by Chancellor Rachel Reeves in her Autumn Budget are “a real setback” and will be “incredibly damaging”, one of the UK’s biggest family-owned breweries has warned. Robinsons Brewery, which has been in business in Stockport for more than 180 years, has issued a warning that 2025 will be “a much more [...]
‘It’s not a fair fight’: HMV boss issues Rachel Reeves Autumn Budget tax demand September 8, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves has been urged to reform business rates in the Autumn Budget by the boss of HMV. Phil Halliday, in an up-coming episode of City AM‘s Boardroom Uncovered show, said the current system should be altered to make it fairer for UK retailers. The managing director added that businesses such as HMV are [...]
Cake Box: ‘We do very well when there’s trouble on the high street’ July 15, 2025 Cake Box has managed to find success on the high street at a tough time for in-store retail, consistently outperforming peers in day-to-day goods. Its recipe for success is simple, according to its chief executive Sukh Chamdal: small celebrations – birthday cakes which start at £20 – are one of the last non-essential things stretched [...]
Thwaites ‘extremely nervous’ Rachel Reeves will raise taxes in Autumn Budget June 17, 2025 Beer brewer Thwaites is “extremely nervous” about the possibility of Chancellor Rachel Reeves raising taxes further in her Autumn Budget. The Lancashire-headquartered group, which also owns pubs and hotels, added its industry is “under tremendous pressure” from Reeves’ first Autumn Budget due to the increases in the National Minimum Wage and the employer’s National Insurance [...]
Reeves’ tax hikes force Timothy Taylor to raise price of a pint June 13, 2025 Chancellor Rachel Reeves’ tax hikes have forced brewer Timothy Taylor to raise its prices as it slammed the “hostile fiscal and regulatory environment” it now faces. The family-owned brewer said its industry is facing “significant input and labour cost increases” as well as dealing with the fall in business rates relief. Timothy Taylor added that it [...]
Greene King: Pub giant calls for ‘urgent help’ after losing £150m May 19, 2025 Pub giant Greene King has issued an urgent plea to the government for help after slumping to a near-£150m loss in 2024. The Suffolk-headquartered group fell to a pre-tax loss of £147.1m during its latest financial year, having posted a profit of £45.2m in 2023. Greene King, which operates around 2,600 pubs, restaurants and hotels across England, [...]
Fun-police Labour are waging a war on pubs February 6, 2025 From business rates to labour costs and even employment regulations that could require landlords to clamp down on free speech, this Labour government has launched an all-out assault on pubs, says Chris Philp For millions of Londoners – especially those who WFH on Friday – when the end of week in the office comes into [...]
Change in business rates could cost firms millions, research finds December 10, 2024 A number of sectors could be hit with hundreds of millions of pounds in extra business rates due to “poorly thought-out legislation”, according to new research. The analysis, conducted by property consultancy Colliers, highlighted the impact that the new business rates legislation proposed by the Labour government could have on larger retailers and hospitality businesses. [...]
Morrisons chief calls for urgent overhaul of business rates system November 24, 2024 The chief of Morrisons has called for the business rates system to be radically overhauled so it “genuinely levels the playing field” between high street retailers and online operators. Rami Baitiéh, the boss of the supermarket, told The Mail on Sunday: “The current proposal threatens to drag hundreds of supermarkets, which are crucial to thriving [...]
Autumn Budget 2024: Reeves extends rates relief for retail and hospitality October 30, 2024 Rachel Reeves has extended business rates relief for the UK’s hospitality and retail sectors. In her highly-anticipated Autumn Budget statement today, the Chancellor announced a 40 per cent business rates relief for the industry, which is down from the current 75 per cent rate set to expire on 31 March. The 40 per cent rates [...]