Family Brewers defend the beer tie
Family brewers have defended the beer tie in a pamphlet that has been sent to every MP.
The pamphlet from the Independent Family Brewers of Britain (IFBB), called What the Tie Means to the Family Brewers, says the tie works for the tenant because it means they are offered "extensive support" from their landlord.
Tied tenants also have lower rents than in commercial properties, the document argues, and support for tenants in the first year of business is estimated to be £8.040.
It says customers benefit from a variety of beers from local producers, and it also helps to promote local jobs.
Political focus on the tie is to increase over the coming months, with the Business, Innovation & Skills Committee set to make a call for evidence on industry progress ahead of the June 2011 deadline for reform.
The new pamphlet says the recommendations from BISC's successor the Business & Enterprise Committee in 2009 have been taken on by the family brewers and incorporated into their codes.
It also says that 57% of pub failures in "recent months" have been free-of-tie sites.
The Independent Pub Confederation (IPC), which wants tenants to have a "genuine choice" to opt out of the tie, has called for tenanted operators with fewer than 500 pubs to "be exempt from any regulatory intervention" in respect of the tie.
No IFBB member has more than 400 pubs — so they would not be affected under the IPC's proposal.
The pamphlet includes positive comments about family brewers from IPC members Nick Bish, chief executive of the Association of Licensed Multiple, Retailers, and Campaign for Real Ale chief executive Mike Benner, as well as three brewery tenants.
