New legislation introduced into UK on-trade

A number of legislative changes came into force in the UK at the beginning of this month which will affect the licensed trade there.

Cigarette vending machines are now banned from pubs and clubs there in favour of under-the-counter sales following appropriate age checks by bar staff (see ‘Cigarette machines banned from UK on-trade’).

The new ‘schooner’ – two-thirds of a pint – measure has also been introduced into pubs for beer and a sample measure of 75ml is now permissible for wine tasting.

Furthermore, beers with an ABV below 2.8 per cent will enjoy a 50 per cent cut in duty while those over 7.5 per cent will experience a 25 per cent increase in duty.