Daisy Cooper

My hon. Friend is spot on with that comment. We have all seen the statistics; while offices and warehouses face marginal percentage increases in tax, the increases faced by our pubs and hospitality businesses are massive. Analysis that I know has been shared with Ministers this morning suggests that the bill for Harrods, for example, will actually fall by £1.1 million, while the bills for many of our small independent pubs, hotels and hospitality businesses will be going up by tens of thousands. The Government cannot hide behind semantics. For a year, they kept using the word “lower”, and that is what businesses heard; however, now the business rates bills have arrived, businesses can see that the rates are higher. The Government gave themselves the power to reduce the retail, hospitality and leisure multiplier by not just 5p, but 20p, but they now refuse to use that power. The system of transitional relief that the Government have put in place is simply an admission that they have got this badly wrong. There is a stark warning coming from the hospitality industry that the looming increase in business rates, due to come in during 2029, will kill the pipeline of owners coming into the hospitality industry. This comes just as the Government are about to publish their visitor economy strategy. There is so much incongruence here. The Government say that they want to do one thing, and then do something else to undermine it. The bottom line is that hospitality and high-street businesses have just two choices: they can shut up shop, or they can put up prices. There are few things that speak to the economic health of the nation and the high street more than the price of a pint. I issue a warning to the Government now: if they do not act, customers will see the £10 pint before the next general election, on Labour’s watch. I call on Ministers again to use the powers that the Government gave themselves to reduce the multiplier by the full 20p, and to make an emergency VAT cut for our hospitality businesses to boost growth, stimulate consumer confidence and help save our high streets. For all these reasons, we Liberal Democrats will vote against the Government’s Finance Bill.