Tetley brewery closes today
Greg Mullholland MP and Leeds CAMRA will bid a final farewell to Tetley's in Leeds today, as the iconic brewery closes its doors for the final time.
Mullholland, chairman of the All-Party Parliamentary Save The Pub Group, is visiting the brewery as Tetley's 189-year history in Leeds comes to an end.
Carlsberg UK announced plans to close the brewery on 5 November 2008 and 140 jobs will be lost as a result of the closure.
Brewing will move to Marston's brewery in Wolverhampton while Tetley's Smoothflow will continue be brewed by Molson Coors in Tadcaster, North Yorkshire.
Leeds CAMRA is set to hold a silent wake outside the Brewery at midday tomorrow, and a glass of beer from one of Leeds' independent breweries will be raised, along with a banner to say farewell.
Mullholland said:"Friday will be a sad day when the city of Leeds bids a final farewell to Tetley's Brewery, which has served as an iconic part of Leeds history for the last 189 years
"Carlsberg UK's decision to close Tetley's Brewery is both very sad and unnecessary. The area's wonderful independent brewers are showing that it is perfectly possible to make great beer here in Leeds."
Chairman of Leeds CAMRA, John Rowe, said: "Friday will be an incredibly sad day for the city and it is with much regret that we see Tetley's leaving the city of Leeds, especially for employees at the brewery.
"The future however looks bright for beer in Leeds. Huge strides have been made in a short amount of time by the excellent breweries left in the city."
Sad day
A spokesman for Carlsberg UK said: "It is a very sad day but I think we said this when we announced the closure back in 2008, and when we announced out-sourcing the brand.
"The reasons for the closure are largely economic - there has been a fall in consumption across the industry and beer sales in general continue to fall.
"That is the kind of pressure that breweries are facing on top of rising costs, and increased duty as a result of the beer escalator."
"Greg Mulholland is a very worthy and reasonable man who is very passionate about Leeds. We respect his views, and have always responded and engaged with him. However, he has seen this (closure) as a personal slight against Leeds.
"The brewery may be closing but we are keeping some of the site open and have managed to secure the future of 114 Carlsberg UK employees in Leeds. They are mainly based in the telesales and credit control functions in Tetley House."
