Shepherd Neame, the 300-year old brewer, has called on the Government to halt its "stupid" policy of tax rises on beer to stem the tide of pub closures.

Jonathan Neame, chief executive of the Faversham-based company which has reported 12-month record sales but lower profits - its first profits dip in 32 years - said the Chancellor should abandon plans to put in a duty escalator.

This would cause rates to rise above the rate of inflation over the next five years.

He said that the problem of binge drinking was wrongly associated with pubs. It was time the Government thought differently about a vital community resource.

"They increasingly see pubs as a social problem on the one hand and a tax collection point on the other," he said. "But they are neither. They are a vital community centre and small business, vital to the rural economy, vital to communities."

Duty increases had more serious impact on rural pubs, which were already finding it more difficult to attract customers faced by higher petrol bills.

"Unless the Government changes its attitude, I fear that the rate of closure - which is 36 a week nationally - will accelerate. We may look back in 10 years time and say 'Oh My God' we’ve lost a huge part of our heritage and community."

He accepted that huge demands on taxpayers’ cash, such as the £500bn bailout of British banks, increased pressure on the Government to raise taxes.

But Mr Neame warned that the Government would lose out because higher taxes would force customers to switch consumption from the pub, where VAT and employment taxes were raised, into the home where there was less tax revenue. "It’s a really stupid economic policy."

The Government should be securing the future of the million pub workers at a time of significant economic downturn to promote social cohesion by ensuring the pub remained at the heart of the community.

Beer consumption had fallen to its lowest level since 1850 and beer was the "least sensible" product to tax.