New 'glass tax' condemned by Birmingham hospitality chiefs

Hospitality chiefs in Birmingham have condemned a new so-called 'glass tax' which they say will increase the running costs of bars and restaurants.

Southside District Business Improvement District has hit out at the packaging Extended Producer Responsibility scheme which come into effect in the UK on April 1.

It is said the scheme will transfer the cost of recycling glass from local authorities to producers and businesses, with estimates suggesting they could rise by between 3p to 7p per beer bottle. This could be much greater for larger wine and soft drinks bottles.

Julia Robinson, general manager of Southside District BID, which supports more than 330 businesses in Birmingham's Chinatown and Gay Village areas, has warned that the new tax will result in hospitality venues paying twice for the same service.

Ms Robinson said: "This new 'glass tax' as it stands will be grossly unfair to our hospitality venues like bars and restaurants because they already pay for their commercial waste to be collected and glass to be recycled.

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"We can understand the need to tax supermarkets and off-licences to help local authorities pay for glass recycling but why should bars and restaurants have to pay twice and receive one service?

"The Government needs to quickly rethink and change this new 'glass tax' or else they will further damage an already struggling hospitality industry, leading to more closures and redundancies."

Her views have been echoed by James Wong who owns the Chung Ying restaurant in Chinatown and who is also a director of Southside District BID.

Mr Wong has now written to Ladywood MP Shabana Mahmood, whose constituency includes his restaurant, asking her to appeal to the Government on behalf of the hospitality sector.

Mr Wong's letter says: "The introduction of the 'glass tax' is yet another hit to a hospitality sector already at breaking point.

"Businesses across the UK are shutting their doors every week but, instead of relief, we're being handed yet another cost. Many venues already pay privately for glass collection.

"Now they're expected to pay again - without any additional service or clear benefit.

"Hospitality is vital to our economy and community life here in Birmingham, yet policies like this show how disconnected the Government is from the reality of what we're facing. We need support, not more pressure."

British Glass says the new tax will be around 50 times higher for glass beverages, based on a 330ml bottle, than other materials while an estimate by the British Beer and Pub Association is that the tax could increase costs by between 3p to 7p per beer bottle.