Since Labour took office, 84,000 jobs have been lost in pubs.
The decline of pubs is not merely an economic loss; it represents the loss of places that make our villages and towns in North Oxfordshire unique. It also entails the loss of face-to-face connections in an era characterised by loneliness.
This situation could have been avoided. However, Labour’s burdensome taxes and regulations have exacerbated the problem. This could have been prevented, but it has been directly attributable to Labour’s disastrous plans, which included:
- Excluding hospitality from the Government’s industrial strategy
- Reducing business rates relief for hospitality from 75% to 40%
- Increasing employers’ National Insurance contributions to 15% while lowering the secondary threshold to £5,000
- Proposals in the Employment Rights Bill that risk undermining seasonal and flexible employment arrangements.
Without any changes, more pubs will close, leading to the disappearance of more jobs, and our communities will lose the backbone of their social life.
Please complete our ‘Save our Locals’ petition: