Scottish Conservative and Unionist MSP for the Lothian Region Sue Webber has urged the SNP government to deliver 100 per cent relief for local pubs and restaurants this week.
Sue Webber MSP’s call comes after it was revealed that pubs in Scotland are closing at a higher rate than anywhere else in the United Kingdom.
Sue Webber MSP has slammed the SNP’s failure to pass on rates relief for the last three years to pubs and restaurants in the Lothian Region provided by the previous UK Conservative government.
It is estimated there are 782 restaurants in Edinburgh, making 15 restaurants for every 10,000 people. 579 are run by single owners. And there are over 350 pubs, one of the highest concentration of licensed premises anywhere in the UK, with several bars per 10,000 people.
She has added that the sector has been dealt another blow with Labour’s tax-raiding Budget including their hikes in National Insurance and says this week’s Scottish Budget which must give pubs and restaurants a “much needed shot in the arm.”
She added that they are the “lifeblood of the community” in the Lothian Region and urged people to back the Scottish Conservative campaign to save Scotland’s pubs, which the party have launched, as part of their common sense Budget proposals.
Scottish Conservative and Unionist MSP Sue Webber said: “Pubs and restaurants across the Lothian Region are really struggling and are desperate for support from the SNP in their Budget this week.
“I am urging SNP ministers to back the Scottish Conservative plan to give pubs and restaurants in the Lothian Region 100% rates relief for the year ahead, meaning they won’t pay any rates relief at all.
“Pubs and restaurants are closing at a higher rate in Scotland than anywhere else in the UK. I know ones in the Lothian Region have suffered due to the shameful failure of the SNP to pass on rates relief delivered by the UK Conservative government over the last three years.
“Their struggles have now been compounded by the new UK Labour government’s tax-raiding Budget.
“Pubs and restaurants are the lifeblood of the community across the Lothian Region and need a shot in the arm. The Scottish Conservatives are on their side and the ball is in the SNP’s court. If we are to save our local pubs and restaurants, then the SNP must show some common sense and back our plan to avoid pubs and restaurants paying a penny in rates relief in the year ahead.”
"This is a ferociously competitive market for food and drink and giving the owners the relief their counterparts in the South are receiving will give them a better chance to survive and thrive. They are already being thumped with Labour's National Insurance raid and a healthy hospitality sector is vital for the whole city economy."
