Cost of supermarket booze set to soar after Labour clobbers brewers with extra £124million in taxes
BREWERS have warned of shop price hikes after being hit with a £124million tax on packaging.
Ministers yesterday saddled beer and lager producers with a £192 a tonne charge for recycling their glass bottles.
The Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), which puts them on the hook for the cost of council collection, sorting and recycling, has been branded a 'Bevy Levy'.
The British Beer & Pub Association reckons it will put around 16p on a four-pack.
Boss Emma McClarkin said: "By heaping a further £124million on brewers - the equivalent of 4p per 330ml bottle – these new fees sabotage the Chancellor's hopes for British businesses and will hit shoppers at the tills.
'To put it mildly, EPR could drive some brewers out of the glass bottle market and heap more costs on pubs which will only endanger jobs and growth.
'This is just not good enough given the barrage of rates and regulations the sector is already grappling with.'
Alex MacDonald of the UK Spirits Alliance warned 'punishing fees' for glass will hurt business and raise the price of drinks for consumers.
Earlier in the year Jeremy Clarkson used his Sun column to lash out at the Bevy Levy and all the other taxes crippling pubs like his, The Farmer's Dog.
EPR makes producers responsible for the full eco lifecycle of their products, footing the cost of councils to collect, sort and recycle waste packaging.
Labour plotting blitz on boozers with Budget 'sin tax' raid on pubs as Wes Streeting threatens outdoor smoking ban
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With less alcohol than previous vintages, this exotic, honeysuckle and spiced yellow peach-laden Chilean makes the perfect summer party white. 14 per cent, Aldi, £5.99Southeast European wines go from strength to strength and this unusual red from North Macedonia is made exclusively from the kratosija grape, better known as zinfandel. Crammed with sweet yet tangy, squishy red and black fruit, it's a summer must-try. 12.5 per cent, Aldi, £5.99Kiwi 'savvy' is our favourite white wine by a country mile and as usual Aldi's Freeman's Bay is the cheapest and best. A clever combo of ripe, zingy gooseberry with lashings of lush passion fruit pizzazz, this is an Aldi core line so there should be enough to go around. 13 per cent, Aldi, £5.99Juicy, fruity, easy-swigging Languedoc merlot with masses of plump, red berry fruit — tailor-made for chilling on sunny days, or enjoyed at room temperature on cold days. 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