Newton Abbot young Tories brew up their own cider petition

By PRSD, on Wednesday, March 31, 2010

There’s nothing like cross-party co-operation. You may remember that on the day of the budget Teignbridge MP Richard Younger-Ross condemned the rise in duty on cider and started a petiton, we have now been informed that ‘over 1,200 Teignbridge residents have signed a petition organised by local Conservative Future members against the 10 per cent increase in cider duty announced in the recent budget’.

Conservative Future is the Tory Party youth wing.

Members collected signatures from ‘weekend revellers’ in bars across the new Newton Abbot constituency, including Newton Abbot’s famous Ye Old Cider Bar. Petitions have also been left in pubs and bars across the area.

The petition reads: “To the Chancellor of the Exchequer: We the undersigned believe that the Government’s decision to increase cider duty by 10 per cent will endanger the cider industry in Devon. We believe that the increase is a tax on the West Country, will harm local cider producers and should be reversed.”

Petitions are available for people to sign in most of the pubs around Teignbridge, including the Dolphin in Kenton, The Atmospheric Railway and the Galleon in Starcross, The Swan Inn, Dawlish, The Smugglers, Teignmouth, The Ness, Shaldon, The Church House Inn, Stokeinteignhead, The Coombe Cellars, Combeinteignhead, Ye Olde Cider Bar and the Dartmouth Inn, Newton Abbot, The Jolly Sailor, Ogwell and the Union Inn, Denbury.

Chairman Richard Fisher told the PRSD: “We received an excellent reception in the Cider Bar from many drinkers who believe, like us, that the cider tax is a tax on the West Country, and will harm local growers and sellers.

“While we believe that higher strength, damaging drinks need to be less affordable – attacking popular, locally produced drinks is the wrong way to go about it.

Deputy Chairman Phil Coombes said: “As David Cameron said, White Lightening has as much relation to an apple as I do with Gandhi. The government just don’t understand this region, and because they don’t have much electoral success here, they don’t really care.”

• Is David ‘Mahatma’ Cameron right? And is the fight against the increased cider duty a party political issue? Comments below, please

(Image: Phil Coombes and Neil Wilson collect signatures in Newton Abbot’s famous Cider Bar – Notice all the Conservative logos on the petition… erm…)

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PRSD

Hi Tiesto
You obviously haven't been reading the site well enough.

But please continue to check us out, and to comment (although you really should check out the community guidelines first).

Cheers

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Tiesto

PRSD I find it rather amusing how this site is meant to give a fair and equal reflection.

However you spin every story to the advantage of the Lib Democrats?

Everyone knows we need change. Its a choice between David Cameron and Gordon Brown. A vote for the Conservatives is a vote for change; a vote for any other party is a vote for gordon brown.

Tiesto...
... pot calling kettle, come in kettle...
... pot calling kettle, come in kettle...
;)

David? David Cox?
David when will you learn slagging off the other parties doesn't make yours look better?

After all it was the Lib Dems who had their fingers in the trough!

Heather Burwin

David I think its great that young people are getting involved with politics.

Furthermore the editor should recognise this and not criticise young peoples efforts whatever party they are.

Additionally RF makes a good point. All the Lib Dem literature recieved through my door is negative about the Tories. All the tories literature delivered talks about positive change. I know which one I prefer.

David

James, Tories plan to double tax on 'strong' cider; yes that includes includes 'problem drinks' like White Lightening, however it will hit most of the stong locally produced ciders. Look at Buckfast tonic wine, in Scotland it has become a problem drink, are the Tories going to increase the tax for Bucky?

The Tories are campaigning against their own policy; but what's new they closed rural post offices, underfunded Devon schools, then complain when Labour carries on their policies.

David, no it's not our policy at all, as this article demonstrates.

http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/2908313/...

By the way, a Lib dem calling a Tory populist is ironic in the extreme. Have you read any of your leaflets recently?

You lot misread the Conservative policy and now you're upset about it. Man up, for heaven's sake man.

RF: It's the Tories saying what they drink in the Cider Bar is a 'problem drink', not me. CF are campaigning against their own party policy. Read the policy - it's not just White Lightening, stong locally produced ciders would fall foul of the Tory policy. I shall send a copy of the Tory policy to loal pubs.

JamesH

There's a difference between Cider and "cider" e.g. white lightning thats what the Tories want to tax hopefully you can understand the difference David. As someone affected by alcoholism I am for tax rises on drinks but this is a tax on the westcountry and it's a tax on responsible drinkers we should be taxing the supermarkets not Cider bars and local pubs they've got enough taxation.

Tim

Good on them I say. Its good to see political parties campaigning for something people care about. Cider in Devon is a speciality enjoyed across the social spectrum and is a high quality drink that is locally produced by small local businesses that need our support.

This tax has nothing to do with preventing bidge drinking or anti-social behaviour. Its another money make scheme of Labour's to try and get them out of a mess they got us into. Its another example of how disconnected they are from the rest of the country.
Tim

Stella Levy

With regard higher taxes on strong ciders - surely this is tarketed at young drinkers, who probably have never tasted a locally brewed Somerset or Devon cider.
I may be wrong, but the discerning cider drinker, would I feel, not mind paying a bit more for this special and very individual tipple, especially if they thought it might be doing a little good in detracting teenagers from drinking the manufactured, 'alco pop' type of 'cider', aimed particularly at the youth market, perhaps with the longer term result of these 'cheap' ciders being withdrawn from sale due to low sales!
Stella.

There's a key difference between white lightening and locally produced ciders, which i believe, is the point being made here.The Conervative policy only applied to problem drinks - are you trying to suggest that what they drink in the cider bar are 'problem drinks'?

Surely this is an early April fools joke on publicans? Where on Earth could Labour have got the idea to tax strong cider?

http://news.sky.com/skynews/Home/Sky-News-Archive/...

That's right - the Conservatives announced plans to increase tax on "problem drinks" including cider in 2008; with depressing regularity when the Tories dream up a stupid populist idea, it is only a matter of time before Labour copy it.