Alistair Darling’s first Budget spells the death knell for traditional British pubs, Shropshire landlords claimed today.Already 57 pubs a month are closing down across the country but after the Chancellor yesterday raised duty by 4p on a pint, 14p on a bottle of wine and an average of 55p on a bottle of spirits, county licensees say even more will be driven out of business.
Eddie Main, ex-secretary of the Telford and District Licensed Victuallers’ Association, said: “We are now witnessing the death throes of a once-great British institution - the pub trade.
“Camra, the Campaign for Real Ale, has just released a statistic that 57 pubs are closing each month in the country. I feel sure that there will be a lot more closures over the next few months.”
He added: “I think people are going to look at sales since the smoking ban and after the raise in duty on a pint and spirits and they are going to ask themselves, ‘Is it worth us going on?’”
Trish Taggart, landlady of the Duke of York pub in Oakengates, has already been driven out of the trade by successive financial attacks on the industry.
“It’s the death of community pubs,” she said.
“I’ve been forced into this because I cannot see it getting any better. The Government has put so much on the price of a pint and the brewery puts on more.
“This has not been a budget for community pubs.”
John Ellis, landlord of The Crown Inn in Oakengates, said there were nine pubs in Oakengates and six were up for sale. He said the picture was typical of any town in the country.
Mr Ellis said the Budget, which he described as “a Budget for binge drinkers”, would only make the battle for survival more chronic.
He said: “I’ve been saying for some time that 20 to 25 per cent of pubs will be gone in two years - I now say that a third of pubs will be gone in 12 months.
“The Government has declared war on the brewing and licensing industry in Britain and has handed it over to foreign-backed brewers and supermarkets.”
Norman Pearce, who runs the Sun Inn at Corfton and Corvedale Brewery, warned: “He (the Chancellor) is going to close most rural pubs down.”
By Ben Bentley
19 Comments
Four pence on a pint equates to the death knell for traditional British pubs? If the LVA seriously believe this, it’s no wonder pubs are having such a bad time: clearly publicans haven’t got a clue how to run their businesses. Perhaps if publicans did more to control unruly elements within their clientele, then more people would be enticed out for a drink. However, hoards of under-age drinkers bingeing on alcopops in their pubs is a huge turn-off to adults.
As Ed Balls said: “So what?”
Idiot.
And Hansard said: he really said: “So weak?” Not the first time Hansard turned a deaf ear to someone talking nonsense in the House.
typical whistle for my fiddle springs to mind. Thatcher really will have the last laugh methinx!!
OH NO 4P i might have to extend my mortgage if i want to buy another pint!! hope the other half doesnt want to buy a bottle of wine I dont no how I would cope spending a extra 18p………..
They’ve always got to have something to moan about. Last week it was that the price should go up to deter underage drinking.. ‘Moaning minnies’ springs to mind.
Only pubs which aren’t attractive as places to relax and enjoy yourself over a pint and maybe a light meal are going to go down the pan. And that doesn’t mean “modernisation”. The best and most popular pubs in Shropshire are the ones with a genuine community atmosphere with good ales and food on offer.
4p on a pint shouldn’t put people off going to pubs.
Other than raising more revenue I still cannot figure the increase out and how it is supposed to stop - reduce binge drinkers, I am sure they were the target audience.
supermarkets will still be able to sell booze cheaper than pubs hence still making getting drunk before people leave home the most cost effective method for those that like to “Party”
The rougue off licence will still sell to under age drinkers.
And under age kids will still get into night clubs because they know the fellow on the door.
Raising prices will damage the pub industry but not solve the problem it was supposed to.
H, you must be one of those financially comfortable, drippy liberal left wingers who lives in a nice detached cottage undisturbed by the great wide world. How many communities suffer the effects of youths binging on cheap white cider available in massive plastic bottles from every corner shop? How many feckless night clubs will continue to find ways to entice binge drinkers through the doors before turfing them out for the police and health workers and ordinary people to suffer? Meanwhile, your village pub and riverside pub catering for the tourist trade, and old fashioned pub where there’s no jukebox and mature men still play dominos and darts will all feel the pinch. The landlords of responsible establishments and their clientele have all been penalized for the atrocious behaviour of a smaller and entirely separate section of of society. There is no justifying it This is the obtuse response of a government that is out of touch with the people.
the old story of fiddle, whistle and gristle comes to mind methinx, right up thatchers street no doubt!!
Matt I think you will find Ed Ball said “So weak” -
I accept the budget does not have many good stories in it but I would say,
• Sprits have not gone up for 10 years
• Wine – 14p on a bottle is not a massive amount when you consider how the price of wine has come down anyway because of greater imports
• Pints – as a drinker, of course i’m unhappy – 4p is not a massive deal when one considers you can go to weatherspoons and get a pint for under £2
• Moreover, the money is going to child benefit – lifting hundreds of thousands of kids out of poverty and also helping OAPs at Christmas time with massive gas bills.
For the normal working man/woman not a great, but not a disaster! Moreover, think that as from next month a 2pm reduction in income tax – not bad!
If Darling wanted to target binge drinking then he should have increased dramatically the price of alcopops as well as legislating the ban on “Happy Hours”.The Government themselves brought in extended drinking hours only now they want to make it expensive to drink within those new hours-weird!This shows how out of touch they are with the general public.
the pubs that will survive are those at present selling beer at a sensible price of say £2 a pint and can include brewery price increases plus Darling’s 4p increase and still sell beer reasonably for say £2.20/£2.30 a pint or those pubs who sell meals can increase the cost of the meals to absorb drinks increases. most pubs will be charging £3.00 a pint by xmas
This Government brought in extended drinking hours,and have reduced out Police Force to a dangerously low level.
Where is the money going Darling?
Surprise me -
Propping up the EC?
Fear you’re right ‘devon’. Why won’t this spineless government take on the supermarkets if they want to affect bingeing.
With a litre of Carlsberg here in Cyprus now costing €1 (75p) we know only too well how expensive it is becoming to go for a drink.
Some charge £3 now.
Pity it isn’t the end of the road for the job of Chancellor held by a Mr. A. Darling !!!
Some of the pubs are failing because of their draconian and miserable landladys!
IEE jAMES comes up with all the old flannel of a true
Labourite. Ed Balls said “SO WHAT” - I heard him so did
everybody else in the house except the Hansard auto
stenographer who twisted things for the second time to
hide the uncouthness of the Labour MPs. The first time it
referred to “little round objects” which was denied by
the Minister who said it.
So all the income is going to help hundreds of thousands
of kids out of poverty is it, it won’t of course but
Labour keeps feeding the naive and gullible with that
forlorn hope.
As for helping OAPs at Christmas, as an OAP myself - they
have done nothing to help us yet - that is those who
have paid their way and are means tested out of all the
benefits that others who have not, get.
The benefits of the 2p income tax reduction is the biggest
con and joke that only a Labourite can think up. Do a bit
of research IEE jAMES and you will find that the “normal
working man/woman” will be taking home less pay as a
direct result of this reduction than what he/she was
before. You plainly have not been studying the financial
implications of this magnificent gesture!!! of Alistair
Darling. This Budget was a dismal exercise that only New
Labour could think up. And it will cost them - hopefully.
Let’s hope they continue as they have started off under
Gordon Brown. The best oxymoron I have heard of late is
an intelligent person supporting New Labour.