UKHospitality report urges cuts to planning, tax costs
A new placemaking report sets 33 recommendations for pubs, bars and restaurants, arguing the sector's tax burden now equals 82% of pre-tax profits.
UKHospitality has published a placemaking report with 33 recommendations to cut regulatory and tax costs for pubs, bars and restaurants, warning that hospitality businesses already pay tax equivalent to 82% of pre-tax profits.
The trade body released the report on 6 October, grouping its recommendations across seven areas: business rates, development, infrastructure, licensing, planning, rent and skills. It argues that restrictive local policies and slow regulatory processes add unnecessary cost and delay to hospitality businesses trying to open or expand.
Among the specific asks: a presumptive planning permission system for hospitality uses, fast-track applications, a review of nutrient neutrality and Biodiversity Net Gain requirements, and changes to how business rates are valued. The report also calls for legislation against upwards-only rent reviews, full rollout of the licensing reform taskforce's recommendations, and wider hospitality foundation apprenticeships.
Hospitality is one of Britain's greatest strengths. Our sector creates places where people want to live, work and invest.
UKHospitality chief executive Allen Simpson framed the asks as an economic argument rather than a sector complaint. "Hospitality is one of Britain's greatest strengths. Our sector creates places where people want to live, work and invest," he said.
A tax burden the sector calls disproportionate
The 82% figure is the report's central statistic: UKHospitality says the sector's business taxes now amount to that share of pre-tax profits, squeezing the margin businesses have left to invest in sites, staff or menus. The report lands as several UK restaurant groups report rising costs across energy, wages and business rates this year.
The timing follows a run of high-profile closures and restructurings across UK hospitality this year, which UKHospitality cites as evidence that the current planning and tax framework is constraining growth rather than protecting high streets.
Planning reform as the common thread
Most of the 33 recommendations centre on speeding up or simplifying planning and licensing processes rather than cutting taxes outright, a shift from UKHospitality's past campaigns, which focused more heavily on VAT and business rates alone. Commercial property data from Christie & Co this year has shown a livelier market for pubs and restaurants changing hands, even as operating costs rise.
UKHospitality has not set a timetable for a government response, and the report functions as a lobbying document rather than a policy announcement. Its recommendations now go to the Treasury and the Ministry of Housing, Communities and Local Government ahead of the next Budget.
