Exclusive: Government washes hands of self-regulation deal over pubco-tenant relationship
Last week, the new minister in charge of monitoring the deal, Jo Swinson, snubbed requests for an interview with the Publican’s Morning Advertiser.
She took the role of parliamentary under-secretary of state for employment relations and consumer affairs from former minister Norman Lamb in the recent Cabinet rehuffle.
Last year the Government failed to implement the Business, Innovation & Skills Committee (BISC) recommendation of a statutory code, instead saying the current industry framework code will be strengthened and made legally binding.
It also agreed that a Pubs Independent Conciliation and Arbitration Service (PICAS) and Pubs Advisory Service (PAS) would be launched.
In an email to the PMA, the Department for Business, Innovation & Skills (BIS) said: “This isn’t an area appropriate for a BIS minister to interview on.”
It added: “The commitments made in the Government’s statement last November have been achieved. Version five of the code, the version that was committed to in the response, was agreed and made legally binding towards the end of last year.
“An independent PAS has been set up and PICAS was established and has now heard its first case, finding in favour of the tenant.”
However, the Government department is still insistent that the agreement for a Pubs Advisory Service has been fulfilled - despite the Publican's Morning Advertiser pointing out that the organisations involved are still working to finalise this part of the deal.
In May, some trade experts set up their own Pubs Advisory Service. They did not consult the trade organisations involved in the self-regulation agreement and it was thought there was likely to be confusion. The BII is working with the Federation of Licensed Victuallers Associations and other trade bodies to offer new licensees access to a PAS.
Currently, the latest version of the framework code — version six — has still to be endorsed by all of the organisations involved.
Adrian Bailey, chairman of the BISC, said: “I am astonished the minister has refused to speak to the trade press about a key issue that has involved the BIS department and its predecessors over many years.
“If everything in the garden is as rosy as the department claims I would have expected her to take the opportunity to demonstrate it. She must understand that this will not go away until my select committee and Parliament is satisfied that the issues raised in the BISC report have been resolved.”
All-Party Parliamentary Save the Pub Group chairman and MP Greg Mulholland has written to Business Secretary Vince Cable who is Swinson’s boss and Swinson herself, asking for an investigation into the department’s officials.
Mulholland said: “These comments from BIS officials are yet more cause for embarrassment. To try to claim that this issue is now resolved would be laughable if it were not so appalling, and will ast-onish pubco tenants across the country who continue to suffer as pubcos take more than is fair or sustainable from pub turnover. They show officials don’t know what is going on with the so-called reforms, which is a dereliction of duty.”
The Campaign for Real Ale’s (CAMRA’s) head of public affairs, Jonathan Mail, said the move was a “substantial misjudgement”.
He said: “It sounds as if officials haven’t been monitoring it effectively. There was a Parliamentary debate on the issue this year that said the Government should commission an independent review. So is the new minister rejecting the will of Parliament?”
Nigel Williams, chief executive at the Federation of Licensed Victuallers Associations (FLVA), urged Swinson to monitor the agreement. “We are afraid that if there is not pressure from the Government, the process will stall,” he said.
The British Beer & Pub Association said “good progress” was being made with the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers, FLVA and BII (British Institute of Innkeeping) and other organisations on the revised version of the code.
