New Prime Minister Andy Burnham announces 20% business rates cut for pubs, clubs and live music venues and Liverpool BID, the voice of hospitality in the city, asks ‘but what about restaurants?’. Tony McDonough reports
Liverpool Business Improvement District (BID) has given a cautious welcome to new Prime Minister Andy Burnham 20% business rates cut for pubs, clubs and live music venues.
However, as the representative body for more than 800 businesses across the city centre, the BID has expressed its dismay that the cut will not include restaurants and cafes, a vital part of Liverpool’s hospitality sector and visitor economy.
Mr Burnham, who entered Number 10 Downing Street on Monday to replace Sir Keir Starmer, said: “The pubs that we’ve got are at the heart of high streets, and I think it’s really important to signal at the start of my time in office that I will be a defender for them. I will speak up for them and act.
“It’s all about doing, isn’t it? You know, I’m doing something today. It may not be everything that they’re looking for, but sometimes the small things matter as well.”
It is the latest in a raft of policy announcements since Mr Burhnam took office. Another was the reintroduction of £2 bus fares across the country.
This business rates policy, which only applies to England, will cost around £100m and will be funded by a review of tax reliefs given to businesses “such as vape shops”. Mr Burnham also says gambling arcades could pay more.
It comes just weeks after a round table event, organised by LBN and Liverpool law firm Gregory Abrams Davidson, saw a discussion on the current challenges facing the hospitality sector in the city.
Bill Addy, chief executive of Liverpool BID, said on Thursday: “We have been lobbying for targeted and dedicated support for hospitality since the pandemic but we want to support all hospitality. This is good news for pubs, clubs and music venues, but where are restaurants?
“Yes. This brings a degree of equity to the outmoded and outdated system of business rates that needs radical overhaul.
“Hospitality is the life and soul of many high streets, along with retail, leisure and culture it forms the beating heart of our city centres. Ensuring that these small businesses are not taxed out of existence has been the rallying call we have amplified from the sector.”
Figures from the BID show the hospitality sector is a crucial element of Liverpool’s visitor economy, now worth 36% of spend in the city centre, with one in 10 jobs in city centre hospitality.
Since 2019, data from Beauclair shows the food and drink industry has increased in debit spend (how much people spend in venues) by 16.4%. Since the pandemic, the industry is growing 2.4% year on year.
In 2025, that expenditure was £322,654,686. According to figures from Liverpool City Council, hospitality, equating to the food industry and accommodation, like hotels, equates to 9.3% of employment in Liverpool, 20,776 jobs.
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“We would ask the Prime Minister to look further at tailored support for restaurants who are bearing the brunt of this and do far more for families during the summer months,” added Bill.
“We need to look at cutting hospitality VAT by 10%. Energy bills continue to be as much of an issue for businesses as they are for households. And the Treasury should use the Autumn Budget to look at the costs of doing business.”