Scottish pubs surf the smoking ban wave

Related tags Smoking ban Scottish pubs Trade Public house Scotland

Scottish pubs coped well during the first week of the smoking ban - with nearly half of those quizzed by The Publican reporting a boost in trade. A...

Scottish pubs coped well during the first week of the smoking ban - with nearly half of those quizzed by The Publican reporting a boost in trade.​ A country-wide straw poll of 10 licensees found four reporting a rise in sales, three seeing no change and the remainder witnessing a slight drop.

However factors such as people visiting smoke-free pubs for the "novelty" were cited as reasons for the upturn in trade following the ban, which came in on March 26.

At the Fluke Inn, in Inverness, licensee Jamie Black said it had been "the busiest week I've had all year by a mile - trade is up by around 10 per cent".

But in the worst case, Cathie McIntyre, manager at the Whistle and Kirk in Glasgow said trade had spiralled down by around 25 per cent.

"People are just having one and then walking along to another pub, whereas before they would have stayed and had four or five," she said.

Paul Waterson, chief executive of the Scottish Licensed Trade Association, said it was too soon to tell the effects of the ban.

"The novelty factor is an important point and the fact people have just been paid has helped," he added.

"It depends on where the pub is and whether they have outdoor facilities on how their trade has been affected."

In terms of compliance, Mr Waterson said there had been "a bit of trouble", while he was concerned that people standing outside late-night venues to smoke could lead to violence.

The Scottish Executive had received 134 calls relating to alleged breaches of the ban, in all premises, up until April 3.

However most pubs appear to have been following the rules, according to figures from Glasgow City Council.

Of 387 premises visited in the city, of which 230 were licensed, only 10 warnings were issued.

Three of these were pubs. But the council said the most common fault was a lack of "no-smoking" signage.

One fixed penalty notice was issued to a restaurant manager.

Views from the trade:

  • Richard Paxton, licensee, Thistle Inn, Inverness:​ "There's been a lot of gurning in my pub this week. A lot of the older guys are not happy about having to stand out in the rain and smoke. I've lost at least half-a-dozen regulars, who are now staying at home. Trade has been down about 10 per cent this week and I can't see that it will come back."

Fay Horrocks, licensee, Rose and Crown, Edinburgh:​ "Trade has been fantastic and is getting busier and busier. We have become more accessible to non-smokers. No-one has objected and we've had no trouble and quite a few people have given up smoking already. We've had a considerable rise in dry and wet sales."

Simon Gow, manager, the Royal Mile Tavern, Edinburgh:​ "All in all we've been about the same, but the weather hasn't helped. About 95 per cent of my regulars are smokers and some are whingeing, but they are all complying - I haven't had to ask anyone to step outside with a cigarette."

Sharon Gibson, deputy manager, Kestrel Tavern, Glasgow:​ "It's early days. The novelty is there. Everyone has religiously followed the fact that you're not allowed to smoke. It's not affected it (trade) at the moment but then it's the end of the month, when people tend to go out more.

William Harley, manager, the Kilbryde Arms, Glasgow:​ "It's still just as busy. We won't be able to tell for a couple of weeks when it really kicks in. It's quite an old man's pub here and a lot of older men have trouble walking. It's too much for them to get up and then have a cigarette. A few of them are finding it very difficult."

Steven Chalmers, team leader, the Nether Inn, Dundee:​ "There's been a small decrease but nothing major. "Our clientele are not trying to argue. Some of them are happy about it and are glad of the ban."

The Queen Anne, Dundee, Jodi Moodie, barmaid:​ "We've not actually noticed any difference in sales. In the future I think it will become habit to go outside."

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