As operators ridicule the Chancellor’s giveaway, one Kensington venue is touting a £25 “kids” menu of burgundy snails and anchovy butter toast
Pubs and restaurants are expected to dream up increasingly inventive ways to milk a tax break on meals for under-18s, after a London venue unveiled a “children’s” menu featuring wild burgundy snail salad and anchovy butter toast.
Rachel Reeves last month announced a temporary cut in VAT on children’s meals, from 20 per cent to 5 per cent, running between 25 June and 1 September. The reduction forms part of a “Great British summer savings scheme” pitched as relief for hard-pressed venues and a sweetener for families. – Business Matters has explained how the Great British summer savings scheme works here.
The Chancellor flagged the policy in a video address to last week’s UKHospitality trade conference, where it landed to a notably muted reception.
Afterwards, senior figures across the trade added their voices to a growing chorus of derision, branding the scheme “laughable” and contrasting it with the roughly £5bn in extra costs piled onto pubs, bars, hotels and restaurants since Labour returned to power in 2024.
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