Stuart Anderson MP has pledged his support for South Shropshire’s hospitality sector ahead of the Autumn Budget on Wednesday, 26 November.
South Shropshire is home to 166 pubs and four breweries which together support more than 2,040 jobs, generate £39 million in tax receipts, and contribute £63 million towards the economy each year.
Last year, Stuart strongly opposed the decision to slash business rates relief for the hospitality sector from 75% to 40%. The change means that the average pub now has to pay an extra three thousand pounds.
Last year’s Budget also cost the hospitality sector 89,000 jobs between October 2024 and May 2025. It is three times the harm seen in the wider economy.
As a result, almost five hundred pubs and bars closed in the first ten months of 2025 after the historic tax hikes. The figure is the highest figure in over twenty years.
It means that the number of pubs in England and Wales has fallen below 39,000 for first time. Over the last year, 1,440 restaurants have also closed their doors for good. This is equivalent to more than two every single day.
Now, a new national survey has found that more than half of hospitality businesses would be forced to reduce their number of staff or increase prices if this year’s Budget does not deliver adequate support.
The survey has also found that half of businesses have been forced to cut staff since the changes took effect in April. Meanwhile, one in four businesses have had to increased their prices.
If returned to government, the Conservatives would scrap business rates for 250,000 retail, hospitality, and leisure businesses. This would enable them to invest in better premises, more staff, and lower prices.
In his submission to the Autumn Budget consultation, Stuart has also urged the government to provide further support for community pubs after it closed the last government’s Community Ownership Fund.
In December 2024, Ministers announced that there would be no further application windows. The Scheme had provided £150 million to help residents take ownership of locally valued assets at risk of being lost.
In response to a recent written parliamentary question tabled by Stuart, Ministers stated that they are investing in the ‘Pub is The Hub’ initiative to help rural pubs diversify their offer.
The non-profit organisation, which has supported hundreds of diversification projects, has secured £440,000 in government funding to help an extra thousand pubs over the next three years.
In doing so, they hope to create 2,500 jobs and 1,600 services for over one million residents in rural or remote areas.
Their research has found that every £1 invested in services or activities generates a return in social value of over £8 for local communities.
Grants of up to £6,000 are available for pubs in rural, remote, or deprived areas, who meet the criteria, and who want to offer extra services in their local communities.
Stuart Anderson MP said: “In South Shropshire, our hospitality sector supports thousands of jobs and adds millions of pounds to the local economy every year. Yet, this April’s hikes in business rates mean that the average pub now has to pay an extra three thousand pounds in tax. Hospitality businesses, which invest more than £7 billion in our high streets and local communities every year, must be protected from any further tax hikes when the Chancellor delivers her Budget on Wednesday.
“Despite repeated requests, I am disappointed that the Government has chosen not to reinstate the Community Ownership Fund. With many pubs and other venues having closed under this Government’s watch, I hope that the Budget will also deliver more dedicated funding for community ownership.”
Shropshire Live is regulated by