Tories pledge tax hikes on strong drinks
THE Conservatives would raise taxes on super-strength beer and cider by up to £1.50 in an effort to crack down on binge drinking, shadow home secretary Chris Grayling told the Tory party conference in Manchester yesterday.
Among a raft of measures designed to place tighter restrictions on the drinks industry, Grayling said retailers would be barred from selling alcohol at below cost price.
Small breweries would be exempt from the taxes, which the Tories estimate could raise up to £80m in revenue, in a bid to support local pubs that have been disappearing in recent years.
A Tory government would also tweak licensing laws to hand councils the power to close down pubs and off-licences deemed to be in breach of rules on the sale of alcohol, Grayling said.
Councils would be given the ability to limit opening hours and would be able to impose “much bigger fines” than previously available, he added.
The shadow home secretary’s policies on drinking would see the tax on super-strength lager rise by more than twofold.
And a large bottle of alcopop would rise in price by £1.50, while a four-pack of extra-strong lager would go up by £1.33.
“These tax changes will not hit responsible drinkers,” said Grayling.
“The ordinary pint in the pub will not be affected and there will be exemptions for some local traditional products.
But we’ll call time on the drinks that fuel antisocial behaviour.”
However, Grayling was left red-faced after he said that the appointment of former army chief Sir Richard Dannatt as an adviser to the Tories was a “political gimmick”.
He was apparently under the impression that the appointment had been made by Labour, rather than by his own party.