"He looked me in the eye and promised help": Derbyshire hospitality boss bars Labour MPs over 'broken promises' on tax reform
A leading Chesterfield hospitality operator says Labour MPs will no longer be served on his premises after the party in Government backtracked on personal assurances from the Prime Minister that he would look to reform business rates.
Steve Perez, owner of the town centre Casa Hotel and the Peak Edge Hotel and Red Lion Restaurant near Stonedge, has joined the nationwide “No Labour MPs” campaign, which has banded business owners together in anger over the lack of industry support in last month’s Budget.
Among other frustrations, Steve has been calling for major reform of business rates and VAT for several years, spanning different Downing Street administrations, and had reason to think Labour might finally take action on the issue.
He said: “Two days before he became Prime Minister, Sir Keir Starmer stood in my premises, shook my hand, and assured me that Labour would support Britain’s hospitality industry. He told me business rates reform was on the table, and that we had ‘nothing to fear under Labour.’ He looked me in the eye and promised help.
“Today, I feel regret for ever hosting him. Because what followed was the opposite of support – a complete abandonment of the very sector that keeps Britain’s high streets alive.
“If there was ever a moment that summarised just how deeply out of touch this Government is with the pubs, bars, hotels and restaurants they claim to champion, it is the groundswell of operators now refusing to serve Labour MPs – and I plan to join them.”
The campaign was launched by Dorset publican Andy Lennox to protest against the changes to business rates announced in Labour’s most recent Budget.
While Chancellor Rachel Reeves trumpeted “permanently lower tax rates for 750,000 retail and hospitality properties,” the reality is that the Government is capping tax rises so businesses pay what the Treasury describes as “less next year than they otherwise would have” – but rates are still going up.
According to market analysis from specialist drinks industry consultants the Oxford Partnership, 85 per cent of pubs will face higher rates from April, with an average rise of 78 per cent.
Steve has estimated Peak Edge faces a “£45,000 payable increase” and said: “As a larger business, we will grit our teeth and weather this storm, but many smaller operators simply will not. I have spoken to independent pub owners who have never paid a penny in business rates before and are now facing bills of £800 or more.
“That may sound modest to the Treasury, but if you are a family-run pub fighting to keep the lights on, it is the difference between scraping by and going under.”
He added: “Some publicans may even find themselves losing not just their livelihood, but their homes. And when a pub closes, it is not only a business that disappears – it is the heart of a community, a place that combats loneliness, anchors local life and brings people together.”
Claiming some reluctance over the ban, Steve acknowledges constituency Labour MPs have previously shown support for his establishments – Chesterfield’s Toby Perkins and North East Derbyshire’s Louise Sandher-Jones.
He said: “I want to be clear – this is not personal, it is principled. And it is a campaign I’m planning to support, not least because these new policies fly directly in the face of what Sir Keir Starmer told me when he visited my business just two days before the election.
“Business rates were front and centre of our discussion during this visit, and he suggested that reductions were on the table. He assured me: “You have nothing to fear under Labour. We are listening and working with businesses, and we understand the difficulties hospitality is facing. The meeting felt very positive, and I took him at his word.
“It was, after all, under Blair and Brown’s Labour Government that my company saw its most explosive growth. We became The Sunday Times’ fourth-fastest-growing business in the country, and I was honoured as CBI Entrepreneur of the Year – an award presented to me by Gordon Brown himself.
“I know what a pro-business Labour Party looks like, and the meeting with Sir Keir Starmer had me feeling hopeful that today’s Labour Party would support such business growth once again. However, the damage that Labour has already caused to the hospitality industry is undeniable, and these new policies will be the final nail in the coffin for many.”
He added: “If Labour is indeed serious about saving British hospitality, there is one immediate, practical step it can take – to cut VAT on hospitality and bring it in line with the European average of 10–13 per cent.
Quite simply, the Government cannot claim to support hospitality businesses while taxing them into oblivion. If Labour wants a thriving hospitality sector rather than boarded-up pubs and empty high streets, it must act now – starting with a VAT cut that levels the playing field.”
Mr Perkins and Ms Sandher-Jones have been approached for comment.