Leave supporter Tim Martin, chairman of JD Weatherspoon, had a Brexit rant this morning as part of the company’s full-year results.
“Journalists regularly ask Wetherspoon for comments on Brexit – although some publications begrudge our few paragraphs on the subject in this section,” he begins.
“Remainer MPs’ main argument – having consistently voted against the only deal on offer – to justify their attempts to scupper Brexit, is that costs for consumers and businesses will axiomatically increase in the event of ‘no deal’.
“However, leaving without a deal avoids a legal liability to pay £39bn, allows the UK to eliminate protectionist import taxes (tariffs) on over 12,000 non-EU products, (including rice, oranges, bananas, Antipodean wine, children’s clothes and car parts etc) and results in resumption of the control of fishing waters”.
The chain also calls for a levelling of VAT between pub chains and supermarkets, which it says pays virtually no VAT in respect of food sales, whereas pubs pay 20%.
“This has enabled supermarkets to subsidise the price of alcoholic drinks, widening the price gap to the detriment of pubs and restaurants.”
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