Tom Kerridge is learning that 'labour values' don't include helping pubs

Now Britain’s most famous publican is out campaigning for a VAT cut for the hospitality industry.

He’s right. Our restaurants and pubs are taxed more than any other sector. They pay VAT at 20 per cent, compared to an average of nine per cent on the continent, taking a huge bite out of their profits. As my father, another publican, liked to say, “This would be a f***ing good business if it wasn’t for VAT.” And few in the industry have the time or energy to hit the airwaves like Kerridge.

Although he has some explaining to do. Having endorsed Labour at the last election, he told Andrew Marr he “still believes” in their values. What are these Labour values doing for businesses? In the last quarter of 2025, four hospitality venues closed every day. This year, that number could rise to six. Of those that have survived, a third are operating at a loss.

This is not a coincidence. More than 200 Labour MPs are ex-charity workers, lobbyists or political staff; not one has run a restaurant or a pub. They are used to living off the state, not funding it. They see profit as something to be taxed and redistributed, rather than something that can be reinvested in communities and create jobs.

You didn’t need a crystal ball to see this coming. Before the last election, Rishi Sunak told us all, “You name it, Labour will tax it.” Paying all over-18s the National Living Wage, increases to statutory sick pay, and a thicket of new rules on contracts and shift patterns - were all in Labour’s manifesto.

In a sector built on tight margins and part-time staff, even small increases in the cost of employing someone quickly add up. The government doesn’t need yet another review to find out why youth unemployment now stands at 16 per cent, they need to look in the mirror.

Thanks to rising business rates and employers’ national insurance contributions, the profit on a pint now stands at just 12p. How are businesses supposed to grow under those circumstances? And let’s not forget, this government wanted to drive even more customers away from restaurants and pubs by banning smoking outside.

Under Labour, running a hospitality business has become economically unviable. Without drastic action, only multi-millionaires with media deals like Kerridge will survive and thousands of pubs and restaurants that keep communities alive will be gone for good.

Kerridge voted for Labour and voted for this mess. He should start by saying sorry.

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Arthur Reynolds is a former government speechwriter and grew up above a pub in Herefordshire.

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