Join The Debate #TAXEDOUT
17 September 2025
#TAXEDOUT – join our Budget campaign
The 2024 Budget was a hammer blow to hospitality.
In the nine months since, hospitality has lost 89,000 jobs – three times that seen in the wider economy.
Compared to the same period over the past decade, hospitality has, on average, created 26,000 jobs each year.
The country needs jobs. We create them. But we are being #TaxedOut.
Hospitality businesses are reporting jobs being lost, hours cut, investment cancelled and businesses closing. A sector that has grown faster than the wider economy in recent years has been badly damaged.
The burden on hospitality is unfair. Even before the Budget, we pay the most tax of any sector in the economy – as much as 75% of pre-tax profit.
A recent survey of hospitality businesses showed that:
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1/3 are now operating at a loss
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76% have had to increase prices
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63% have reduced the hours available to staff
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1/3 of businesses are restricting opening hours
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4 in 10 have reduced investment
We are a leading creator of part-time jobs, first jobs for young people, older people and people returning to the jobs market. And we are creating growth across the country, not just in major cities, but in towns and in rural and coastal communities.
We want to get back to growth. But we need three changes in the Budget.
And we need your help. Find out below what we are asking for and how you can use your voice to tell the Government to change course before hospitality is #TaxedOut.
What we are asking for:
Tax on our sector is the highest in the economy. And that is costing jobs. It needs to change. We are calling for three things in the Budget.
Lower business rates to revive high streets
Our high streets are a vital social and economic resource, but running businesses in the middle of our communities is being punished by the tax system.
The Government should follow the announcement in last year’s Budget of business rates reform with a maximum discount for hospitality businesses under £500,000 rateable value, while exempting larger hospitality properties from the business rates surcharge.
To find out more about our work on business rates, click here.
Fix NICs to boost jobs
Last year’s employer NICs changes were badly designed which meant that sectors like hospitality that provide accessible careers were hit hardest. The impact on someone earning £25,000 was twice as bad as someone earning £150,000.
We are calling for the extension of the exemptions to include young people and people returning to work from welfare. That would support job creation and reduce the benefits bill.
Cut VAT on hospitality to drive investment
While other countries have supported hospitality with a lower rate of VAT, hospitality in the UK pays the full 20% – putting our tourism industry at a disadvantage and making it harder for people to support their local businesses. The EU average VAT on hospitality is 10%-13%.
The Government should follow the majority of European rival nations by reducing VAT on the sector.
Have your say and join the debate.
