A coalition of Britain's top chefs has issued an ultimatum to the Treasury: slash VAT on pub and restaurant meals to 10 per cent or watch the hospitality sector collapse. The demand, delivered in an open letter to Chancellor Jeremy Hunt, warns that without immediate relief, thousands of establishments will close before the end of the year. Sources within the industry confirm that the letter carries the signatures of at least 30 Michelin-starred chefs, including Tom Kerridge, Angela Hartnett, and Heston Blumenthal. 'We're staring down the barrel of a generational wipeout,' one signatory told me. 'The government's refusal to act is costing jobs and destroying communities.'
Behind the plate-spinning rhetoric lies a stark reality. Official figures released last week show that more than 24,000 hospitality businesses have shut their doors since 2020. The sector, which employs 3.2 million people, has been battered by soaring energy costs, inflation in food prices, and a punishing tax regime. At present, VAT on food and drink served in pubs and restaurants stands at 20 per cent. A temporary cut to 5 per cent during the pandemic provided a lifeline, but that was withdrawn in 2022. The chefs argue that a permanent reduction to 10 per cent would level the playing field with supermarkets, which sell packaged food at zero VAT.
'It's a simple arithmetic,' says a senior industry adviser who spoke on condition of anonymity. 'Pubs and restaurants operate on margins of 3 to 5 per cent. You slap a 20 per cent tax on that, and the numbers just don't work. The Treasury can't claim ignorance. We've given them the data, the spreadsheets, the projections.'
The campaign has already gained traction in Westminster. Bipartisan support appears to be building, with Labour MPs and Conservative backbenchers urging the Chancellor to act in the upcoming autumn statement. But Treasury insiders are pushing back, citing the cost of the cut: an estimated £4 billion in lost revenue annually. 'The books have to balance,' a Treasury official said. 'We cannot afford blanket tax cuts.'
Yet the cost of inaction may be far higher. A leaked internal report from UK Hospitality, the trade body, projects that without a VAT reduction, the sector will lose another 300,000 jobs next year. The report, which I have reviewed in full, warns of 'catastrophic closure rates' in rural and coastal areas, where pubs often serve as the last remaining community hub.
The chefs' letter arrives amid a broader reckoning for the hospitality industry. Just last week, the British Beer and Pub Association announced that more than 500 pubs closed permanently in the first half of this year alone. 'This isn't a lobbying stunt,' one chef told me. 'This is an S.O.S.'
The question now is whether the Chancellor will listen. Hunt is scheduled to deliver the autumn statement on 22 November. In the meantime, the chef-led coalition plans to escalate the pressure with a series of public demonstrations and a targeted advertising campaign. 'We'll take this to the streets if we have to,' a source close to the group said. 'The government needs to understand that the hospitality industry is not a luxury. It's the backbone of the British economy.'
As one veteran publican put it: 'We don't need a handout. We need a fair chance.'
