Lord Avebury – 2014 Parliamentary Question to the HM Treasury

The below Parliamentary question was asked by Lord Avebury on 2014-04-08.

To ask Her Majesty’s Government what changes they expect in alcohol consumption from on-trade and off-trade purchases respectively over the next five financial years, following the changes in alcohol duty announced in the Budget.

Lord Deighton

Changes to beer, cider and wine duty at Budget 2014 help support British pubs. The Government also supports the Scotch whisky industry for the unique role it plays in the UK economy. Freezing the duty on spirits supports the domestic market for the Scotch whisky industry and jobs in Scotland.

The Government expects that there will be a small increase in alcohol consumption as a result of these changes to alcohol duty at Budget 2014 in both the on-trade – where alcohol is sold to be consumed on the premises (e.g. pubs, bars, restaurants) – and for the off-trade – where alcohol is sold to be consumed off the premises (e.g. supermarkets, off-licences). The tables below provide estimates of changes in consumption in both percentage and volume terms relative to the previous alcohol duty rates policy.

Estimated change in consumption (%):

Estimated change in consumption (thousand hectolitres of alcohol):