The regular series returns to What’s Brewing with the most up-to-date campaigning for pubs, pints and people across Westminster, devolved parliaments and local government. 

Check out what the Campaigns and Communications team has been up to.

Westminster 

Budget campaigning

The chancellor’s Budget is on 26 November. 

The team has been promoting our e-lobby so members can ask their MPs to back a fair deal for pubs, pints and people in the Budget. 

An incredible 2,706 emails were sent to MPs in October. Email your MP here.  

All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group report

The All-Party Parliamentary Beer Group published its latest report How Brewing and Pubs can Help Drive Economic Growth in October. 

CAMRA made a submission to the inquiry prior to the report being made, which has 10 key recommendations to government.

This includes business rates reform and a 20p reduction in the standard multiplier, remove/reduce increased NICs, reducing beer duty and extending the draught duty discount to 20 per cent below the general rate, better planning and co-operation with the sector on new regulations, and setting the no-alcohol beer definition at 0.5 per cent ABV.

Parliamentary questions

Many MPs submitted parliamentary questions on CAMRA’s campaigning in September, including a guest beer right for tied tenants as part of the Pubs Code for England and Wales. 

On this issue, read Julie Minns MP’s question here; Daisy Cooper MP’s three questions here, here and here; and Liz Saville-Roberts MP’s question here. 

Ellie Chowns MP also raised a question on cider definitions, specifically minimum juice content: 

Q: Ellie Chowns (Green, North Herefordshire): to ask the secretary of state for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, what assessment she has made of the potential merits of raising the minimum juice content for cider to 50 per cent. 

A: Angela Eagle (Lab, minister for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs): The government has not assessed an increase to the minimum juice content for cider. Engagement with the sector has suggested that an increase to 50 per cent is not supported by the industry and is not what consumers in the UK would expect from their cider products. 

The team will be writing to the minister to make the case for introducing a minimum juice content requirement to guarantee quality cider products for consumers. 

Pub is the Hub funding

Business and Trade minister Kate Dearden MP announced that 40 Pub is the Hub projects will receive £440,000. 

Read CAMRA’s response on Facebook.  

Licensing reforms [England and Wales]

The UK government has published proposals and a consultation on changing the licensing framework in England and Wales for the on-trade. 

Proposals include: 

• introducing a National Licensing Policy Framework providing national direction to support consistency, transparency and alignment across local council areas with “broader government goals such as economic growth, enhancing cultural representation, high street resilience and improving public health and wellbeing” 

• introducing perpetual or longer-term licences for recurring festivals and community events 

• strengthening the agent of change principle in the licensing system to better protect music venues etc 

• introducing “hospitality, leisure and culture” zones within council areas to “develop and preserve vibrant night-time economies”

• an amnesty of expired, redundant or inappropriate minor licensing conditions without the need for a full licensing review of each premises 

• ending the requirement for printed statutory notices in a local newspaper for alcohol licence applications or major variations 

• improving the application process for outdoor trading and pavement licences

• increasing the number of Temporary Event Notices that can be applied for in each calendar year 

• reviewing the use of blanket policies or restrictions across entire council areas. 

Read CAMRA chairman Ash Corbett-Collins’ response to the government’s red tape review of the licensing system here. 

Scottish government and parliament 

Alcohol advertising restrictions

The team wrote to Neil Gray MSP, cabinet secretary for Health asking what the Scottish government’s intentions are on alcohol advertising and sponsorship restrictions.  

Planning and permitted development rights

The Scottish government opened a consultation on extending permitted development rights, measures that would make it easier to convert buildings into housing without planning permission – including pubs. 

The team submitted a response against using pub buildings through these measures to stop even more of these community spaces from being lost to conversion forever. 

Welsh government and Senedd Cymru 

Business rates reform 

The Welsh government’s Draft Budget 2026 to 2027 detailing spending and financing plans has been published. 

Finance secretary Mark Drakeford MS made a statement on the draft to the Senedd, where he announced that retail, leisure and hospitality’s 40 per cent business rates relief will end in April 2026. 

Retail businesses will soon benefit from a new lower multiplier business rates system, but this will not be extended to pubs despite CAMRA campaigning asking the Welsh government to include these vital community spaces. 

The team is contacting MSs, party spokespeople and the Cross-Party Group on Beer on Pubs on the lack of business rates support for pubs in Wales. 

CAMRA has also set up an e-lobby for our members in Wales to ask their MSs to back a new lower multiplier business rates system or extend the 40 per cent rates relief for Welsh breweries and pubs. 

Email your MS here.