Chancellor Rishi Sunak has frozen duties on alcohol as the hospitality industry navigates through the coronavirus. In his budget speech this afternoon he said that this year the “planned increase in spirits duty will be cancelled.” There was also positive news for pubs, with the chancellor describing them as the “centre of community life. But too many have closed over the past decade. We have already promised to introduce a business rates pub discount of £1,000 for small pubs, but I’ve heard calls from other MPs that we need to do more, especially given the possible impact of coronavirus. So today I can announce that exceptionally for this year the BR discount will be £5,000.”