Oxfordshire MPs Call for Hospitality Support After Visit to the Banana Tree in Henley

Freddie van Mierlo MP, Olly Glover MP, Charlie Maynard MP, and Calum Miller MP have written jointly to the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rt Hon Rachel Reeves MP, requesting the Government to provide urgent and targeted support for the hospitality sector, with a particular focus on casual dining businesses.

The letter follows a recent visit by Freddie van Mierlo MP to the Banana Tree restaurant in Henley, part of the Big Table Group, where he met with staff and management to hear first hand how rising operating costs and changing consumer habits are impacting the business.

The team at Banana Tree explained how the increase in employer National Insurance contributions, as well as rising energy and food costs, has forced them into raising prices on the menu. Cost conscious customers are therefore visiting less frequently or dining in alternative settings, like quick service restaurants.

In the letter to the Chancellor, the MPs warned that approximately 84,000 jobs have been lost in hospitality since the 2024 Budget, and that casual dining businesses, which are important employers in towns and cities across the UK, are facing disproportionate burdens under the current tax and regulatory framework.

The letter calls for:

• A reversal of the increase in employer National Insurance contributions
• Reform of the business rates system
• Investment in skills and training through a reformed Apprenticeship Levy
• Targeted relief measures for hospitality businesses

The Liberal Democrat MPs argue that the Government has viable alternatives to raising National Insurance, such as reversing tax cuts for banks, increasing the Digital Services Tax, and reforming Capital Gains Tax.

Freddie van Mierlo MP said:

“Casual dining restaurants like the Banana Tree in Henley-on-Thames are an essential part of our high streets and local economies. This segment of the sector has traditionally offered diners high quality table service at an affordable price point. It would be a shame if it were squeezed out altogether, simply because of a tax on jobs.

“Restaurants like the Banana Tree offer jobs, skills, and spaces for communities to come together. My first ever job was in a causal dining setting as a Sixth Former, and I know just how important the life skills you learn are.

“It is clear from what I heard in Henley that the current financial pressures are unsustainable. We need targeted, fair support to ensure this vital sector survives and thrives.”