Beer has seen the first like-for-like quarterly increase in sales for four years, according to the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) - see press release. The BBPA collects data through a UK Quarterly Beer Barometer which found:
- Total [quarterly] beer sales up 2.9 per cent
- First like-for-like quarterly rise for four years
- Pub beer sales down 6.3 per cent on last year, but up on first quarter
- Supermarket and off-licence beer sales increase by 13.7 per cent
The BBPA called for a freeze on beer tax to help support Britain’s pubs as the Treasury is currently conducting a review of alcohol taxation and pricing. However political attention has increasingly focused on supermarket sales, now reportedly accounting for nearly 70% of alcohol sold. Various on-trade bodies have called for a 'level playing field' between on and off-sales, backing Government action to ban-below cost sales and calling for a 're-balancing of the tax system'.
Currently Home Office consultation on the implementation of the new alcohol and licensing proposals is open until the 8th September 2010.
Further links:
- 'A taxing time for beer drinkers' The politics of drinking blog, 2010
- 'More beer sold in supermarkets than pubs by next year' The Telegraph 2009
- 'Falls in consumption but longer term trend and impact not clear' Alcohol Policy UK 2009
- 'Drinking in the UK: an exploration of trends' JRF 2009
- 'Drinking in Great Britain' [pdf] IAS factsheet 2010 update
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