The #VATsTheProblem petition has now surpassed 200,000 signatures. That is not a niche industry campaign quietly gathering dust on a government website. It is a clear, loud signal from a sector that has had enough.
Chef and publican Tom Kerridge launched the campaign in early June 2026, calling on the Government to permanently reduce VAT for hospitality businesses from 20% to 10%. Within 24 hours, it had over 20,000 signatures. Within three days, it passed 100,000. The momentum has not slowed since.
The goal is 1 million signatures, and while the sector is not there yet, the direction of travel is unmistakable.
Why 20% VAT Is Unsustainable
The UK currently has the second-highest hospitality VAT rate in Europe, behind only Denmark. At 20%, it applies to food, drink, and hotel accommodation alike. Compare that to the rates facing competitors across the Channel:
| Country | Hospitality VAT Rate |
| Germany | 7% |
| Ireland | 9% |
| France | 10% |
| Spain | 10% |
| Italy | 10% |
| UK | 20% |
The average across Europe sits at 12.8%. British hospitality businesses are not just paying more tax than their European counterparts. They are paying significantly more, while facing the same rising energy costs, wage pressures, and post-pandemic debt.
The consequences are visible. Industry figures show that one in five hospitality businesses fear they could fail within the next year. One third of hospitality businesses are currently operating at a loss.
This is not a sector asking for special treatment. It is a sector asking for a level playing field.
What a 10% Rate Would Actually Mean
A cut to 10% is not simply a tax reduction. For many businesses, it would be the difference between viability and closure.
Reducing the VAT burden would free up capital that operators currently have no choice but to hand to HMRC. That money could go towards:
- Keeping venues open that are currently running at a loss
- Reinvesting in teams, through better pay, training, and conditions
- Creating new jobs at a time when hospitality employment remains under pressure
- Lowering prices for consumers, stimulating demand and footfall on struggling high streets
Tom Kerridge made this case directly on BBC Newsnight, arguing that the current rate makes it almost impossible to run a sustainable hospitality business. His position is backed by UKHospitality, the British Beer and Pub Association, the British Institute of Innkeeping, and CODE Hospitality.
The Government’s response so far has been limited to a temporary VAT cut on children’s meals, from 20% to 5%, running from 25 June to 1 September 2026. It is a gesture. It is not a solution.
The Push to 1 Million
200,000 signatures is a significant milestone. It is not enough.
The campaign’s organisers are targeting 1 million signatures to build an unanswerable case for Government action. From 1 July, the campaign moves into its consumer-facing phase, with businesses across the country encouraged to display #VATsTheProblem branding and ask customers to sign directly.
That means the next phase depends on operators. Venues, staff, and customers all need to get behind this together. The more visible the campaign becomes inside pubs, restaurants, hotels, and cafes, the harder it becomes for ministers to look the other way.
“Let’s take the incredible momentum we’ve already built and get our pubs, restaurants, cafes, hotels and many more decked out in #VATsTheProblem branding, to make sure consumers understand and are fully behind us.”
Tom Kerridge
At Achieve Hospitality, we work every day with the people who keep this sector running: the operators, the managers, the chefs, the front-of-house teams. We see first-hand how hard businesses are working to stay open, retain good people, and build sustainable teams. A 10% VAT rate would give operators the breathing room to invest in their workforce, create new roles, and build the kind of working environments that attract and retain great talent. That is positive for businesses, positive for employees, and positive for the sector as a whole.
We also recognise that recruitment is a cost, and right now every cost matters. That is why, as a specialist luxury hospitality recruitment agency, we are doing our part:
- Reducing our recruitment fees in 2026, at a time when most suppliers have increased theirs
- Maintaining access to premium, vetted candidate networks
- Supporting long-term talent strategy
- Protecting operator profitability
In luxury hospitality, reputation is everything and leadership drives reputation. Our role is to deliver exceptional talent while easing financial pressure, not adding to it.
If you work in hospitality, or care about its future, this is the moment to act. Sign the petition, share it with your team, and put it in front of your customers.
Sign the petition at vatstheproblem.co.uk
Frequently Asked Questions
It is a campaign calling on the UK Government to reduce hospitality VAT from 20% to 10%. The aim is to ease cost pressure on pubs, restaurants, cafes, and hotels so businesses can stay open, invest in teams, and support local high streets.
A lower VAT rate would leave more cash in operators’ hands. That money could be used to protect jobs, improve pay and training, reinvest in venues, and help businesses remain viable during a period of high costs and thin margins.
The campaign is targeting 1 million signatures to build an unanswerable case for Government action. From 1 July 2026, the campaign moves into its consumer-facing phase, with businesses encouraged to display #VATsTheProblem branding and ask customers to sign directly.
The UK’s 20% hospitality VAT rate is among the highest in Europe, and businesses are still dealing with energy costs, wage pressure, and pandemic-related debt. For many operators, the current tax burden makes long-term sustainability much harder.
Achieve Hospitality supports the campaign because a healthier hospitality sector is better for jobs, leadership, and long-term growth. The business has also reduced recruitment fees in 2026 to help ease financial pressure on operators while still maintaining access to vetted talent.
