Pub landlord savages Rachel Reeves with mocking taps tax raid protest | UK | News

Counterfeit beer taps labeled “Rachel Thieves” have been revealed behind the bar of a Hertfordshire pub, with the pub’s owner targeting Chancellor Rachel Reeves over crippling tax rises.

Green Dragon’s Chris Ghazarian staged the fake beer pump as a protest, telling customers that the fake pint would taste “very bitter” and cost more than anything available, but anyone who ordered it would only get water.

Punters at the Flaunden venue are finding the spectacle entertaining, with the 36-year-old host saying: “They find it funny. Frankly I’m not making them pay for it.”

What kind of flavor profile might this fictional drink have? Mr. Ghazarian mused: “If it were real beer, it would probably be very bitter and not very pleasant. It would be the most expensive thing in the bar.”

He noted that pump clips often show alcohol percentages, adding: “Most pump clips have alcohol percentages, and percentages are a big thing when you’re dealing with the Chancellor. But since there’s no certainty with him, I thought, ‘The percentage could go up at any time.'”

Labour’s cost avalanche has buried hotel bosses across Britain; Tighter drink-driving rules spell trouble for businesses in remote areas, as business rates, National Insurance contributions and minimum wage demands climb.

Interest bill will rise despite government U-turn

Ministers may have backed down on business rates but the Green Dragon’s financial woes remain dire; “Thousands more pounds” will land on Mr Ghazarian’s desk because valuers increased the estimated value of the property by 66 per cent from £26,500 to £44,000.

Mr Ghazarian claimed business owners were being portrayed as bad guys by Sir Keir Starmer’s government, branding the Chancellor’s rescue plan – a 15 per cent interest rate cut lasting a year, followed by a further two-year bill freeze – as extremely short.

He recalls confusion reigning among his customers: “I had a lot of customers say to me, ‘I thought there would be a 15 percent discount on the price of my pint.’ And I had to explain that my business rates were still going up, that I was only getting a 15 percent discount off what it could have been.”

‘You cannot impose taxes on the path to growth’

Mr. Ghazarian said running a business has become impossible thanks to government policy: “The government has made it impossible to run a business while claiming to be pro-business and supportive of economic growth. But you can’t tax your way to growth.”

The shotgun clip serves a purpose beyond comedy, he explained: “The shotgun clip expresses our opinion in a small format. Everyone notices it, agrees, and laughs a little. It’s a way for me to voice my thoughts and how I feel about what’s going on right now.”

Flaunden does not normally feature in stories of political rebellion; Timber-framed cottages and the 19th-century church of St Mary Magdalene define the village’s noble character, The Telegraph reported.

Spies and ambassadors among former bosses

Allegedly the Green Dragon’s clientele archive includes some notorious names – Adolf Hitler’s ambassador to England in the 1930s, Joachim von Ribbentrop, is said to have dined there, as have Cambridge Five traitors Donald Maclean and Guy Burgess. Village folklore claims that the two were seen deep in conversation at the bar just one day before they left for the Soviet Union in 1951.

Sir Keir Starmer’s name almost joined the historical record when he popped into the neighboring village hall last month to hold green energy talks with locals, but the pub did not make it into his itinerary.

It’s a missed opportunity, according to Mr Ghazarian, who has held the tenancy since 2019: “I would like to have a word with him. I think I have the right to do so. I pay enough VAT, taxes and everything else, like most people.”

Vicious circle threatens closures

Cost inflation ripples throughout his operation, the homeowner warned: “With all these additional costs, my suppliers are raising their prices, which means I’m raising my prices, which means the customer has to pay, and it’s going to come to a point where the customer says, ‘You know what? I’m not going to pay that.'”

He argued that a domino effect was inevitable: “So your trade goes down, because you’re quiet you don’t need as many staff, so unemployment goes up. It’s a simple formula. You don’t need to be an accountant to figure it out. It’s a very vicious cycle and once you start gaining momentum, it’s going to be very difficult to stop it.”

Mr Ghazarian said hospitality venues, including pubs, restaurants and cafes, deserved VAT cuts but insisted the entire business rates system needed to be dismantled and rebuilt from scratch.

The future of family businesses is uncertain

Current conditions remain manageable but storm clouds are gathering: “We’re doing well at the moment, but I’m not very confident about what might happen next. I’m married, have an 18-month-old child with another on the way, and this is our family home.”

Admitting the possibility of closure looming if the tax burden continues to rise while customer numbers fall, he said: “I want to keep the pub open, but if customers stop coming and taxes become too high, there’s only one way it’s going to end. Pubs will close. Hopefully it won’t be us.”

A Treasury spokesman said: “We’re supporting Britain’s pubs; cutting April business rates by 15 per cent, followed by a two-year freeze, extending World Cup opening hours and increasing the Hospitality Support Fund to £10 million to help venues grow… later this year we’ll build on our Pride in Place program with a new High Street Strategy to regenerate town centres.”

The spokesman continued: “This benefits businesses across Britain, along with capping corporation tax, reducing duty on draft alcohol and making six cuts to interest rates.”