Mulholland and Tuppen clash over RICS
Pub campaigner Greg Mulholland MP and Enterprise chief executive Ted Tuppen have clashed over Enterprise Inns compliance with Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors (RICS) guidelines.
Mulholland accused Tuppen of making "contradictory statements" during the Business, Innovation and Skills Select Committee hearing last Thursday (7 July).
However, Tuppen responded by suggesting Mulholland "may have misled" the BISC committee by "leaving out" some of paragraph 7.21 of the RICS guidance.
In a letter written to chair of the committee, Adrian Bailey MP, Mulholland expressed concerns with comments made by Tuppen regarding Enterprise Inns compliance with the RICS guidelines.
Mulholland, chair of the All Party Parliamentary Save The Pub group, said: "At the second hearing this week, Ted Tuppen stated that he agreed with the way rents were assessed by RICS and that all Enterprise Inns rent assessments were in accordance with RICS guidance.
"However, Mr Tuppen also disagreed with the principle that the tied tenant should not be worse off than the free of tie tenant.
"It must follow then that Mr Tuppen does not, in fact, agree with the way rents are set by RICS, and that Enterprise Inns' rent assessments do not conform to these standards.
"The statements made by Mr Tuppen and other pubcos heads, illustrate a sad reality that these companies either can't or won't implement the Select Committee's directives to avoid government intervention.
"Enterprise Inns has had over a year to act in accordance with new RICS guidance, and they have failed to do so. Now is the time for a statutory code to correct this market abuse."
Tuppen was quick to defend the record of his company on RICS guidance. He said: "It is disappointing that Mr Mulholland, in that letter [to Adrian Bailey], may have misled the committee and distorted the meaning of paragraph 7.21 of the RICS guidance by leaving some of it out."
Tuppen claimed that Mulholland omitted the following part of paragraph 7.21: "In arriving at a market rental value, it is preferable for analysis to be made of transactions relating to similar properties with similar lease terms. Indeed, the efficiency of the market relies on transparent market evidence".
He added: "Enterprise Inns remains committed to following RICS guidance and we are pleased that, despite conducting hundreds of valuations and rent assessments in new lettings and rent reviews since the updated RICS guidance was published, we have received no complaints on our valuation methodology from any tenants, lessees or professional trade advisors, other than the recent complaint made by Simon Clarke of Fair Pint.
"We have also been able to provide written evidence to Mr Bailey that RICS have no reason to suggest that Enterprise Inns is seeking to circumvent their valuation guidance."
