Support 67,000 jobs in the East Midlands with a Christmas pint

• East Midlands residents raising a Christmas pint in pubs and at home should enjoy the taste of supporting 67,000 local jobs, which pay £894 million in wages and contribute £1.5 billion to the economy, data from the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) shows.

• The brewing and pubs industry is one of the UK’s biggest employers, supporting almost one million jobs across the country.

• Pubs have an equally vital social contribution. Across the East Midlands, 79% of Brits say pubs are important in bringing people together, while 65% think pubs help combat loneliness and isolation.

• The Long Live the Local campaign invites pubgoers who can afford it to buy an extra round to support the brewers, delivery drivers, farmers and thousands of people behind the pint.

East Midlands residents raising a Christmas pint should enjoy the taste of supporting 67,000 local jobs in breweries, bars and supply chains which pay £894 million in wages and contribute £1.5 billion to the economy, data from the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) reveals.

The BBPA’s Long Live the Local campaign is shining a light on the nearly one million people behind the pint who make the festive season merry.

As East Midlands pubgoers raise a local brew, they support hundreds of thousands of jobs across the region: including farmers growing hops, brewers developing new recipes, scientists working on quality control and logistics teams managing deliveries.

‘The local’ is often the heart of community life and a major source of local employment and economic growth. Its social value is most apparent at Christmas, bringing people together and combatting loneliness during the festive season. Recent YouGov polling in the East Midlands found:

• 78% of people feel pubs have a positive effect in communities

• 79% say pubs are important in bringing people together

• 65% feel pubs help combat loneliness in their local area

Pubs and brewers have faced major increases to their costs over the last few years while struggling to limit price rises. The Autumn Statement provided vital support with an extension to business rates relief and the freeze on beer duty, but the next budget must provide surer footing for brewers and pubs by:

1. Cutting tax on beer in the next Budget and pledging to bring beer duty down to the European average over the course of the next Parliament. The EU average duty on a pint of beer is currently 20p, whereas in the UK it is 54p for draught beer and 59p for packaged beer - nearly triple the European average and 12 times more than Germany.

2. Reforming business rates so pubs and brewers can invest in the future, with the 75% relief maintained and a cap to the planned increase in the 2024 business rates multiplier until this is implemented

3. Lowering VAT rate to 12.5% for pubs to help publicans and customers with cost of living increases

The Long Live the Local campaign invites Brits to buy an extra round this Christmas to support the people behind the pint and join the campaign to secure the future of their local.

Julia Bigley, director at The Anglers Rest, a community pub in Derbyshire, says:

“The Anglers Rest was the last pub in the centre of our village. When we heard it was going to be sold in 2012, we managed to get it declared an asset of community value. We managed to raise about £290,000 pounds to buy it. Now it’s a community-owned business with 388 members.

"We employ a lot of the local younger people. There are very few businesses in the village so our pub has the advantage of being an ideal place to provide our young people with proper work experience.

“It’s been a very tough year for the business, but we can’t do without it. People can’t live without social connection and the Anglers pub and cafe provide a space where people can go to be together.”

Marie Robson, who co-owns The Ball House pub with her husband in Boston, says:

"We open our pub on Christmas Day and offer a free dinner for people who live alone and have no one to spend the day with. It fills the pub with joy to have so many people chatting to a complete stranger.

“That social connection is so important for mental health. If you don’t see people, you can’t look out for them. I’ve even called a customer who I hadn’t seen in a couple of weeks, just to check if they’re alright.

“Our dream is to make it a real community pub. We even set up a free bouncy castle because I want people to feel they can just come out, sit down and enjoy the sunshine with the kids, even if they can only afford one or two pints. No one should be excluded from having that connection.”

Emma McClarkin, CEO of the British Beer and Pub Association, says:

“So many of life’s milestones are marked by sharing a beer, whether in commiseration or joy. Behind the glass, there are nearly a million people across the cities and regions who make this possible: including brewers, technicians, delivery drivers, farmers and the pub staff at the counter.

“The great British pint is woven into the fabric of our communities, economies and regional identities. Local pubs are some of our most beloved tourist attractions, while our breweries produce some of the finest beers in the world.

“But the industry needs our support to survive. Britain remains one of the most expensive places in the world to have a pint, with beer duty more than double the average across Europe. The next Parliament must make bringing beer duty in line with Europe a priority - taking at least 34 pence off the price of a pint - as well as reforming business rates so that brewers and pubs can continue investing in the future, providing quality jobs and training for people across the whole of the UK.”