UK chancellor Rishi Sunak has delivered his first-ever Budget. Apart from promising better living conditions in the face of the ongoing coronavirus scare, amidst other things, the budget has also frozen duties on beer.

This means that for only the second time in 20 years, the cost of alcohol will not be going up.

Opening his speech with a simple, yet powerful promise of being the Government that gets things done, Sunak states that pubs are at the center of community life and it is unfortunate that so many of them have shut shop.

“We're freezing duty rates on beer, spirits, wine and cider helping with the cost of living,", Sunak told Mirror UK.

Not only that, the budget also announces help for pubs. As such, the business rates discount for pubs was raised from £1,000 to £5,000 giving drinking establishments a £4,000 tax break.

The move has been saluted by pub groups as well as by beer, wine and spirit producers.

Heineken UK tweeted the following:

Meanwhile, Brett Heffernan, CEO of Brewers Association Australia has complained how the good news in the UK has been a sore reminder for Aussie beer drinkers who continue to pay more for beer than they do on weekends thanks to a 1.2 percent tax rise levied by the country’s Government earlier this year:

Read the full news here: https://www.mirror.co.uk/money/budget-2020-beer-wine-whisky-21674461