CUMBRIAN pubs have had a mixed reaction to the alcohol duty freeze with some welcoming it and some saying that it does not make 'much of a difference.' 

Chancellor Jeremy Hunt announced in his budget on Wednesday that alcohol duty will be frozen from January until August next year. 

The Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) welcomed the move and the 75 per cent discount on business rate bills for pubs in England for another year beyond April. 

Nik Antona, CAMRA chairman, said: "Freezing all alcohol duty until August 2024 is certainly to be welcomed. However, this is a missed opportunity to give targeted help to protect the nation's pubs, social clubs and taprooms by cutting tax on draught beer and cider served in pubs instead of an across-the-board freeze in all alcohol duty."

Jack Summers-Glass, the Furness representative of CAMRA, agreed with him. He said: "We're happy with the discount in business rates, it is still an important measure. It would be nice if it had been a bit more permanent.

READ MORE: These are the Furness pubs in the Good Beer Guide 2024

"They need to look at the whole business rates system. There's a difference between a small privately owned business and British Aerospace." 

Mr Summers-Glass said that the cut in tax is also mitigated by other factors, such as the loss in footfall as fewer young people go to the pub. He said that competing with cheap alcohol in supermarkets continues to be an ongoing issue for pubs. 

Dave Windsor, who owns The Robin Hood in Barrow and The Newton Arms in Dalton, said that the reduction is 'very welcome.' He said: "Anything is better than nothing from the government." However, he also said that it may mean that everything else goes up as well. 

Head chef Craig Burns from the Tower Bank Arms, in Near Sawrey, said: "It doesn't really make that much of a difference. Consumers just aren't spending. I think it's a whole mixed bag of things. I think the energy prices need to be solved. If you freeze VAT like in Covid we were getting more footfall." 

Simon Rayner-Langmead, from the Hare and Hounds in Bowland Bridge, said: "I think personally it's great anything we can do to save some more money. I think it would have been more helpful if they had done a freeze on VAT, especially at this time of the year."