MP slams ADZs and blanket glass bans

Tory MP Nicholas Winterton has hit out at alcohol disorder zones (ADZs) and blanket glass bans, during a rousing speech at the Great British Beer Festival.

On officially opening the festival yesterday, the MP said ADZs and glass bans risked "penalising trouble-free community pubs that happen to be situated in city or town centre locations".

He added: "The government needs to realise that the vast majority of pubs in this country are well run and trouble-free."

Winterton said more needed to be done to support community pubs.

The MP for Macclesfield also posted his opposition to his own party's recent proposals to increase tax on alcohol, during his speech at the trade session of the festival.

He said he reacted with "some real hostility and unease" at a Conservative think tank's recommendation to increase the price of a pint by 7p, wine by 15p a bottle of wine and whisky by 25p a bottle.

"A beer duty increase will lead to people buying their alcohol from supermarkets where beer is used as a loss leader," he said.

"A drop in trade will force pubs to close and communities that use those pubs will lose yet another facility. There will also be an increase of cheap alcohol smuggled in from lower tax countries."

The issues should be tackled through "targeted education and support for the small minority of people who abuse drink".

He earlier said it was great to see so many licensees and brewers and "not the accountants who appear to carry more influence within the industry".

Winterton added: "The practice of our large breweries acquiring smaller competitors is a race where the only loser is you the consumer who is often denied a local brewed beer."

The trade session of the festival was sponsored by The Publican.