First they gave us the devastating news that chocolate would be shrinking and now we're being hit with this: beer is set to face a 'crippling' tax hike. It's enough to drive you to drink.
A 19 percent rise in business rates will hit 70,000 pubs across the UK from April this year. The new rates will see a rise of 10 percent in beer duty over the next two years, the British Beer and Pub Association has announced.
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In real-terms this means a 5.3p increase per pint. The BBPA has also warned that pub landlords are in a rough time in the coming few years as they will struggle to deal with additional costs; the shake-up in business rates has meant that one pub in Stoke is now paying four times what it was.
Speaking to the Sun, Brigid Simmons from the BBPA said: "The government says it wants to be on the side of small business, so we need action now.
"Our pubs are at the heart of our social lives, and unless pubs get relief from huge rate rises, many more will be in very serious trouble."
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Kate Nicholls, chief exec of the pubs lobby group The Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR) told the Sun: "Untimely and crippling increases in business rates are threatening to squeeze the life out of many pubs.
"Ours is the only sector which is facing increases from April across the country.
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"It is well past the time the Government took action to ensure that businesses remain competitive and have the capacity to invest, support jobs and grow."
Wine drinkers needn't feel too smug, either. According to the Wine & Spirit Trade Association (WSTA), it's likely that post-Brexit wine lovers will be paying, on average, an extra 29p for a bottle of wine from the European Union.
Even wines from outside of the Europe Union might face a price hike of around 22p, thanks to the weak pound.
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Chief Executive of the Wine and Spirit Trade Association, Miles Beale, told decanter.com: "We should be under no illusions that wine prices are likely to increase, which in the current climate could lead to a bottle of wine going up by 29p.
"This is of grave concern to the wine industry and it is vital that government come out in support of the trade which generates £17.3bn in economic activity."
Prices of pints
The average price of a pint of ale in the UK is £3.47, but there is a pretty big difference of 87p between the cheapest and the most expensive region, according to the Good Pub Guide 2017.
Unsurprisingly those living in the capital are forking out the most for a pint of ale paying, on average, £4.08.
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This is closely followed by Surrey, where you can expect to pay £3.75.
On the other end of the spectrum we have Herefordshire, where a pint will set you back around £3.21, Yorkshire is in second place where a pint costs £3.25.
If you're the sort of person who plans their holiday around getting pissed, then you might want to pay a visit to Krakow in Poland or Kiev, Ukraine, because you can pick up a pint for £1.07 in either city.
Of course, if you like a bit of sunshine to go with your beer, then you pack your bags and head to Malaga, Spain where the average pint costs £1.11.
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Absolute bargain, shall we just move?
Featured Image Credit: PA