Would a £10bn VAT cut really save hospitality? June 20, 2026 Calls for the government to slash VAT on hospitality firms have been backed by pub and restaurant bosses, and Prime Minister hopeful Andy Burnham. What would this tax break really mean for the economy? The UK’s pubs, hotels and restaurants say they are at breaking point. Higher business rates, hikes to national insurance and minimum [...]
Brits urged to back UK pubs during World Cup amid booking surge June 16, 2026 Brits have been urged to support their World Cup team by getting down to the local pub amid a four-fold increase in bookings for England games. The UK hospitality sector is set for a 42 per cent sales boost across the group stages of the World Cup – with kick-off times in the US, Canada [...]
Hospitality leaders ramp up pressure on Labour to slash VAT June 11, 2026 Leaders of top hospitality firms have ramped up pressure on Labour to slash VAT, which they warn is leading to hundreds of thousands of job losses. Pub chains JD Wetherspoon, Fuller’s and Greene King, as well as hotel giant Hilton and Mexican restaurant chain Wahaca, have thrown their weight behind a campaign to cut Value [...]
Podcast: Palantir to sue Sadiq Khan, GSK’s $10bn mega-deal, and could the World Cup rescue pubs? June 10, 2026 In today’s episode of City AM’s Business As Usual podcast, we get stuck in the top stories of the day – from a major pharma M&A deal to a US software giant poised to take legal action against the Mayor of London. City Editor Simon Hunt gives his round up of major markets stories, as Pharma giant [...]
Fuller’s slams ‘unprecedented government interference’ in pub sector June 10, 2026 The boss of Fuller’s has slammed Labour for “unprecedented government interference” into the pub sector, which he says is to blame for 5,800 pubs closing in a decade. Simon Emeny, executive chairman of Fuller, Smith and Turner, has launched a broadside against the government’s hikes to business rates, national insurance contributions and alcohol duty. “When [...]
‘Reason to be optimistic’: Hospitality bosses say World Cup a lifeline for pubs June 9, 2026 Pub bosses are hoping for a much-needed boost from the World Cup this summer, as the hospitality industry warns of a crushing tax and cost burden. Leading pub chains Greene King and JD Wetherspoon have told City AM they are hoping for a “useful boost” to counteract the “layering of costs” they have faced in [...]
Where can I watch the Fifa World Cup from in London? June 8, 2026 Book your tables and pre-order those booze towers because the World Cup is here – for more than a month – and City AM has you covered. Here are the sport desk’s top nine non-traditional spots to enjoy the footie from. Brigadiers The City staple is an ideal place for those early 8pm kick-offs. Its [...]
Santander: Fans to spend thousands watching World Cup from Britain June 5, 2026 Santander have said to expect Brits to fork out thousands to watch the Fifa World Cup from afar this month. Research from the bank reveals that Brits will spend, on average, £630 on eating out and drinking over the 104-match tournament while it estimates over £200 will be spent on takeaways, the same on taxis, [...]
How Young’s is shrugging off hospitality gloom June 3, 2026 Like many of his Square Mile customers, Young’s boss Simon Dodd knows how to schmooze with booze. Three years ago, the listed pub chain exec invited rival Clive Watson, the founder of City Pub Group, for lunch at Smiths, the top-notch bar and grill atop Smithfield market, for a steak and a glass of wine. [...]
Pub bosses warn tax hikes driving youth unemployment crisis June 1, 2026 Pub bosses have warned that Labour tax hikes are driving the youth unemployment crisis, which is pushing the UK towards an “economic catastrophe”. Several hospitality leaders have called on the government to reverse its increases to employer national insurance contributions (NICs), which pubs say are making it harder for them to hire young people. Last [...]