Reeves: I'll protect ‘pavement pints'
The Chancellor said that a new licensing framework would encourage al fresco dining and street parties 'not just for the summer, but all year round '.
Ministers have also pledged to make it easier to open new bars, music venues and cafes as part of plans to rejuvenate the high street.
The new licensing arrangements will fast-track permissions for outdoor dining in dedicated areas, ministers said.
More disused shops are expected to be converted into pubs, bars, cafes and other venues under the plans for dedicated 'hospitality zones'.
The zones could have permissions for outside dining, street parties and extended opening hours pushed through quickly.
Developers in the zones will be made responsible for soundproofing buildings they construct near pubs or clubs, to protect existing venues from noise complaints.
The Chancellor said: 'Whether it's cheering on the Lionesses or catching up with friends, our pubs and bars are at the heart of British life.
'For too long they've been stifled by clunky, outdated rules. We're binning them – to protect pavement pints, al fresco dining and street parties – not just for the summer but all year round.'
Jonathan Reynolds, the Business Secretary, said: ' Red tape has stood in the way of people's business ideas for too long.
'This Government has a plan to replace shuttered shops with vibrant places to socialise, turning them into thriving cafes or busy bars which support local jobs and give people a place to get together and catch up over a beer or a coffee.'
But Andrew Griffith, the shadow business secretary, said: 'Though any cutting of red tape for hospitality businesses is welcome, this is pure hypocrisy and inconsistency from Labour.
'This socialist government is crippling the hospitality industry by doubling business rates, imposing a jobs tax and a full-on strangulation of employment red tape.
'As a result, shorter opening hours, shedding jobs and expensive pints are becoming the norm.
'Only the Conservatives are on the side of the makers and will support businesses across Britain to create jobs and wealth.'
The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) warned in July that the equivalent of more than one pub a day will close across the UK in 2025 after spiralling bills and taxes.
The BBPA estimated that 378 pubs will close in 2025, amounting to more than 5,000 job losses. In 2024, 350 pubs closed.
Brewdog, the brewery and pub chain, announced this week that it would close 10 of its venues. James Taylor, Brewdog's chief executive, told staff that the cuts were partly a response to 'rising costs, increased regulation and economic pressures'.
Trade body UK Hospitality 'strongly welcomed' the proposals. However, they warned: 'They can't on their own offset the immediate and mounting cost pressures facing hospitality businesses which threaten to tax out of existence the businesses and jobs that today's announcement seeks to support.'
The Government has said the plans will be subject to a call for evidence.
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