Have your say on the Budget 2025

#Empowering Independents

Ahead of this year’s Budget we are asking members to support our work lobbying government, and we would be grateful if you could write to your local MP.

We need the Government to better understand the issues that our sector is facing to help to make it easier for businesses in our sector to trade profitably and grow. We support calls from across the hospitality sector calling for urgent action to lower business rates, mitigate the impact of NICs changes and for immediate targeted VAT relief (thank you for those who have responded to our call to evidence on VAT).

Please take a minute to use our template and email your local MP.

Thank you for your support.

Alan Fox

Find your MP using the button below: 

This will provide you with their email address, social media details, phone number, and website link.

We recommend emailing this letter to your MP by copying and pasting the text. You should also look to personalise it with your own experiences of how VAT continues to impact your business.

For example:

“Since the last budget, my business has experienced a drop of [xxx] in profit and an increase of [xxx] in costs. As a result, I have been unable to hire new staff / have had to reduce my opening hours / cannot grow my business etc.

Please cc in [email protected] when you send the email

Subject line for your email: Please support independent hospitality businesses ahead of the Budget

Dear (name of MP)

I own (please insert your business) an independent hospitality business in your constituency.

Ahead of the Budget I am writing to you to request a meeting to discuss the current challenges faced by my business and how you might be able to support and champion independent hospitality businesses in your constituency.

Government policy unfairly penalises small hospitality businesses. We need Government to better understand the issues with the way VAT is levied and discuss how real change through a smoothing mechanism and revision of the VAT threshold could stimulate growth in the sector, generate more tax revenue and create valuable jobs and save hospitality businesses at the heart of our communities.

I would be grateful for the opportunity to meet with you to discuss some of these challenges. I am a member of the Nationwide Caterers Association and their public affairs lead, [email protected] will be in touch with your office to see if a meeting might be arranged in the coming weeks.

Yours sincerely,

(INSERT YOUR NAME & ADDRESS)