Surprising Aussie city where buying a beer is cheapest – as brewers warn tax increases will soon push price of a schooner to $12
- Canberra has the cheapest bear at $7.50 a schooner
- Beer prices to rise 3.7 per cent from February 1
- Aussies pay the fourth highest beer tax in the world
Canberra has been revealed as the cheapest Australian capital city to go out for a beer, with the average price of a schooner sitting at $7.50.
Brewers, however, warn they will struggle not to pass costs on to consumers as the industry faces a tax hike from February 1.
Beer drinkers will be hit with the second hefty tax increase in six months from Wednesday, with some warning the price of a schooner could hit $12 in some areas.
The beer tax is linked to inflation, which earlier this week saw the highest annual leap since 1990.
Increasing for the fourth consecutive quarter, the Consumer Price Index (CPI) saw a year-on-year increase of 7.8 per cent.
Canberra (above) has the cheapest city beer in Australia with pubgoers paying an average of $7.50 for a schooner
As a result, beer drinkers can expect the tax on draught and packaged beer to rise by 3.7 per cent or approximately $1.50 more per slab.
It comes after a 4 per cent increase in August, and brings the total hike to almost 8 per cent in just six months.
Australians now pay the fourth highest beer tax in the world, behind Japan, Finland, and Norway.
In a letter to Treasurer Jim Chalmers – seen by The Daily Telegraph – the Brewers Association of Australia warned the federal government a schooner could soon cost $12 in a club or pub.
‘People are already paying $8 a schooner in parts of Sydney – if this keeps rising like this it will be soon be surging past $12,’ said Brewers’ Association boss John Preston.
The BAA has urged the Albanese government to freeze the tax on beer sold in bottle shops for at least two years, and to halve the beer tax paid on tap beer in pubs in clubs.
The Brewers Association of Australia warned an upcoming tax jump of 3.7 per cent will see schooners (above) cost $12 in a club or pub
‘These are hidden tax increases which have been going up every six months for the past 20 years,’ Mr Preston said.
‘The record increases are making it more difficult to get people back through the door.’
Ahead of the expected price hike, NCA Newswire crunched the numbers to work out the average price of a schooner of draft beer available in pubs, restaurants, and bars across Australia’s capital cities.
Beers are cheapest in Canberra, with the average price for a 425ml glass of beer sitting at $7.50, although prices as low as $5.50 can be found in some establishments.
Adelaide claimed the unenviable title of Australia’s most expensive beer, with the average 425ml glass – called a pint locally – costing $9.14.
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