Fair Pint accuses Tuppen of "cynicism
Campaign group Fair Pint has accused Enterprise Inns chief Ted Tuppen of "breathtaking cynicism" for suggesting that licensees need a support group, that his company would help fund.
At The Publican's fifth Industry Leaders Forum in Oxfordshire this week, Tuppen said licensees needed a "champion" and it was "unfortunate that that vacuum has been filled by a pressure group [Fair Pint]."
He said Enterprise would be "prepared to put a lot of money" behind such a group.
But Fair Pint has objected to the comments.
Licensee Steve Corbett, a member of the campaign group, said: "Tuppen's plan to counter the effectiveness of Fair Pint, by trying to establish an organisation paid for, and therefore controlled, by his company is breathtaking in its cynicism."
He argued Tuppen's comments had "underlined the effectiveness of Fair Pint" and "exposed the truth behind the pubcos' claims that they are willing to listen and change in response to the Business and Enterprise Select Committee Report".
At the forum, Tuppen also suggested the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers (ALMR), of which Enterprise is no longer a member, could step into the void to stand up for individual licensees.
But ALMR chief executive Nick Bish appeared perplexed by the suggestion. "This is news to the ALMR - nobody at Enterprise has spoken to us about this," he said.
"As our name suggests, the ALMR represents the views and concerns of multiple licensees but we campaign on generic issues of concern to the trade as a whole. We are actively engaged in dealing with the huge challenges facing our industry - not least the relationship between lessees and their landlords - but at a general, not an individual level.
"We were not set up, and indeed are not constructed to provide the one-on-one support for individual lessees of the type outlined by Ted Tuppen, but would be happy to contribute to an industry debate about how this can be best provided."
