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Wed, 02 Sep 2026

Wed, 02 Sep 2026 VAT cuts won't lower prices for customers, say NI hospitality leaders

A Londonderry hotel manager said it would be "disingenuous" to suggest a VAT cut would help lower prices

* Hospitality VAT in NI and the rest of the UK is 20%, compared to 9% in food and 13.5% on accommodation in the Republic of Ireland.
* The industry is calling for a VAT cut to compete with lower rates in the Republic, but MPs have heard that it would not necessarily lead to lower prices for consumers.
* Hospitality leaders argue that a VAT cut is needed to help with squeezed profit margins and is a matter of survival, particularly for businesses in border areas.
* Michael Cadden, chair of Hospitality Ulster, said: "We are currently victims of our geography."
* A VAT cut would cost the Treasury between £225m and £250m per year initially.
* Gareth Hetherington, director of the Ulster University Economic Policy Centre, suggested a VAT cut pilot scheme in NI to assess its impact on investment.
* Adrian Cummins, chief executive of the Restaurants Association of Ireland, said that lower VAT rates in the Republic had helped protect businesses and jobs.
* Selina Horshi, Managing Director at White Horse Hotel, said that she would not pass on a VAT cut directly to consumers, but rather use it to offer more competitive rates to tour operators.