Chris Maclean: A government we deserve

For some weeks I have been nursing an unpleasant thought. It's based on something I read many years ago. A Frenchman once wrote: "Every country has the government it deserves". So it sent me reflecting on it. I think, here in Britain in 2008, we are having the government we deserve. Let me explain.

Across the licensed industry there is widespread upset and distress at the changes heaped upon us. In a matter of a decade we have seen root-and-branch reform of all aspects of the trade. The Licensing Act and the smoking ban are probably the two most visible changes. But energy suppliers, recycling obligations, health and safety issues and a plethora of other onerous requirements all add their bit. We have been subjected to a relentless series of laws, wrapped in a veneer of social responsibility, which we have dutifully absorbed. Sadly there have been casualties and, it is increasingly evident, many more businesses will go to the wall.

But here is the unpleasant bit. We've done nothing about it.

Certainly I can pin-point individuals who have taken a stance. There are several smoking martyrs making headlines. There are respected public figures who have made encouraging gestures. The Publican​ is running various initiatives worthy of acknowledgement. The chief executive of my brewery, Jonathan Neame, has stuck his head above the parapet about duty issues. There are others who aim to speak for the collective issues of the licensing industry. But it is painfully apparent that there is no collective voice despite many claiming to be so. ALMR, BBPA, BII, FLVA, Noctis and the Guild of Master Victuallers all claim to represent the trade but cannot. The recent Publican Live​ trade show had excellent representation from all aspects of the industry but notably absent were Diageo and Wetherspoon, two of the biggest players in the field. For all of my efforts to demonstrate a cohesive front I discover fractures and divisions. Shareholders, pubcos and tenants have different objectives. There are different price structures for different categories of business. It is the divisions, rather than the collective whole, that our industry presents.

And this is why I think we have the government we deserve.

In a few weeks time many of us will have an opportunity to influence how our local authorities are run. But not locally, regionally or nationally is one political party prepared to take a stance in defence of our industry. Labour, Conservative or Liberal Democrat, not one champions our cause. Our voice is stifled and ignored.

We have the government we deserve because we are not united in what we want.

But what is more frightening still is the realisation that the government now knows this. Divided we make easy pickings. Divided it is easy to make the changes, increase the taxes and destroy our heritage. With scarcely a murmur.

It cannot be otherwise until tenants and pubcos and retailers and pub operators and all who dispense what we know to be essential to this country's economy and history believe in the same thing and can convince the representatives of government at all levels of our worth.