George Osborne election budget: Happy hour for beer, cider and whisky with duty cuts

UK Chancellor George Osborne delivered a beer-soaked election budget on Wednesday (18 March) when he cut the rates on beer, cider, whisky and other distilled spirits.

Beer duty was cut by a penny per pint, while duty on cider was cut by 2%. Duty on Scotch whisky was cut by 2%, along with other spirits, while duty on wine was frozen.

"Last year I cut beer duty for the second year in a row and the industry estimates that it helped create 16,000 jobs," Osborne said in the House of Commons.

"More pubs saved, jobs created, families supported," he added.

The beer duty cut has become an annual tradition for Osborne, who has cut a penny off a pint in each of the last two budgets.

While beer-drinkers and publicans across the country will revel in the cut, London is set to benefit the most due its high concentration of pubs, the highest in the UK.

Beer duty has actually increased 40% since 2008, partially due to policies passed by the last Labour government.

Osborne has also disposed of the so-called beer escalator introduced by the previous government that ensured beer prices would rise by 2% above inflation each year.

IBTimes UK will be reporting on the budget throughout the day. Make sure to follow @IBTUKPolitics and read our live blog for all your red box related news and commentary.