Pubs and clubs across Midlothian are joining forces to call for hospitality businesses in Scotland to receive the same support being offered by Andy Burnham’s Labour Government in England.
Labour MP Kirsty McNeill has launched a local campaign bringing together landlords and hospitality businesses amid concerns about the financial pressures facing pubs, clubs and other venues.
Writing on X, the Midlothian MP said:
“Midlothian’s pubs and clubs are coming together to ask for the same support Andy Burnham has provided to hospitality down south.”
“If you’re a local landlord who’d like to join the effort please drop me a line. Cheers.”
The campaign follows moves by Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s Government to provide additional business rates support for hospitality businesses in England, as ministers seek to ease pressure on pubs and other high-street businesses. Labour Home reported in July that the Government had announced a 20 per cent cut in business rates for pubs, clubs and live music venues from next year.
McNeill is now arguing that pubs and clubs in her constituency should not miss out simply because they operate north of the border, where business rates policy is devolved to the Scottish Government.
The issue is particularly important for the hospitality industry, which has faced sustained pressure from rising operating costs, staffing challenges and increases in bills.
McNeill’s intervention seeks to turn those concerns into a coordinated local campaign, encouraging Midlothian landlords to come together and make the case for comparable support in Scotland.
The campaign could also increase political pressure on the Scottish Government to examine what additional relief can be provided to hospitality businesses.
Pubs play an important economic and social role in towns and communities across Scotland, supporting jobs, supply chains and local economies while providing important community meeting spaces.
For Labour, the campaign also provides an opportunity to contrast measures being taken by the Burnham Government at Westminster with the support available to businesses under the SNP-led Scottish Government.
McNeill is now calling on more pubs and clubs across Midlothian to join the campaign as she pushes for hospitality businesses in Scotland to receive comparable support.
