Noah Law welcomes 20% rates cut for Cornwall pubs and clubs

The pint at your local is about to sit behind a slightly lighter set of books. From April 2027, pubs, social clubs and live music venues across Cornwall and the South West are in line for a 20 per cent cut to their business rates bills, a change the Government says will save the typical pub around £1,100 in the next financial year.

The announcement came from Prime Minister Andy Burnham, who framed it as part of a wider push to keep the businesses that anchor local high streets from disappearing.

What is changing for Cornwall’s venues

The cut applies to pubs, social clubs and live music venues and takes effect from April next year. It sits on top of support already announced, so it is worth understanding the run of it. In January, a 15 per cent relief was announced on 2026/27 bills for pubs and live music venues, with those bills frozen in real terms for a further two years. The new 20 per cent discount for pubs, clubs and live music venues from 2027/28 comes on top of that.

There is one limit worth flagging. The Government has said the new 20 per cent discount will not be available to the very largest live music venues, with the detail to be set out at the Budget.

How many businesses stand to benefit

Nationally, the Government says the new cuts will benefit nearly 32,000 pubs, clubs and live music venues. Closer to home, there are around 600 licensed clubs and 4,000 pubs and bars across Cornwall and the wider South West that would directly benefit. The business figures are drawn from UK Business Counts data published by the ONS.

Noah Law, Member of Parliament for St Austell and Newquay, welcomed the move as a first step rather than the finished job.

How it is being paid for

The Government says the changes will be fully funded, in part by reviewing reliefs for businesses it describes as not making a positive contribution to local communities. It named vape shops as an example of what it called anti-social businesses whose reliefs are under review.

The other strand is tax compliance for online sellers. The Government wants to crack down on businesses that sell through online marketplaces but do not meet their tax obligations, which it says puts them at an unfair advantage over firms that follow the rules. A consultation on extending VAT online marketplace liability is now open, running to 18 August 2026, with any revenue raised earmarked for improvements to the business rates system. The package of support is worth around £100 million a year.

The wider high street plan

The rates cut lands alongside other measures aimed at town centres. Local authorities now have the power to hold High Street Rental Auctions, which can force landlords to let units that have stood empty for more than a year. That runs beside a previously announced £301 million commitment to High Streets Innovation Partnerships, intended to turn town centres into mixed-use spaces with new homes, health services, libraries, community hubs and green spaces.

At a local level, Noah Law points to hands-on work bringing empty buildings back into use through St Austell CLT, a community-owned housing co-operative he founded with a local steering group.

The Government also set the announcement against earlier reforms. At Budget 2025, Chancellor Rachel Reeves announced a permanent 5p cut in the business rates multipliers for more than 750,000 retail, hospitality and leisure properties, funded by a higher multiplier for the most expensive 1 per cent of properties. At the same time the Government announced £4.3 billion of support to keep bills down for those facing increases at revaluation, capping bill increases at 15 per cent for most businesses from April this year, or £800 for the smallest.

What the politicians said

Andy Burnham said the change marked a shift in approach. “For too long, governments have stood by while cherished venues have disappeared from our local high streets. So today I am changing that,” he said. “This government will back the businesses that people want to see in their communities. I said I would protect pubs and local high streets, the beating heart of our communities, and that’s what we will do. What we’re announcing today is just the start as we work to bring back hope across the country.”

Noah Law said the recognition was overdue. “I have long made the case that pubs and venues are the beating heart of our high streets and communities and should be recognised as such,” he said. “I am delighted to see these first steps being taken to bolster them but this is just the start of a raft of measures of mine and my Government’s to help revitalise our towns.”

Chancellor of the Exchequer John Healey said the venues were central to local life. “Pubs, clubs and live music venues are at the heart of communities across the UK. They help make a place what we love. They bring people together, support local jobs and help keep high streets and town centres busy, which is why we will back them all the way.”

John added that the aim was growth spread across the country. “We are determined to bring hope back, give businesses the support they need and generate growth in every postcode.”

The Government has said this is one step rather than the whole of it, with a wider promise to reform the business rates system, including Small Business Rates Relief, still to come at the Budget.