Statutory code consultation: politicians welcome news

There had been concern that the intervention of Chancellor George Osborne had scuppered plans for the consultation and in particular plans to ask for input on a free-of-tie option.

Chairman of the Business Innovation and Skills Committee Adrian Bailey told the Publican’s Morning Advertiser: “It does seem that the Department for Business Innovation and Skills and Vince Cable have won the battle with George Osborne and the Treasury to hold the consultation. It does appear to be a comprehensive consultation and I particularly welcome the free-of-tie option questions. My committee will go through it in some detail and we will be holding a session ourselves to summit to it.” 

Shadow pubs minister Toby Perkins said: “This is something we have been calling for for 18 months now and we hope that this leads to lasting reform of the pub industry.

“Today is a day where an opportunity now exists for the real reform that is going to be required to make a real difference to Britain’s pub trade. I think it is too early to say that this is a significant day but this has the potential to be a significant day.

“It is a welcome opportunity for people across the trade and the broad coalition that have been calling for these changes for some time to make sure that a very strong unified voice is heard in the industry.

“There remain suspicions that the Government won’t deliver on the scale of change needed, particularly in light of the months of delay and recent suggestions that plans for a statutory code were being shelved. But today’s step by the Government towards Labour’s position is to be welcomed and if ministers have the courage to do the right thing they will have our full support.”

Greg Mulholland MP said: “It is good news that the consultation on the desperately needed statutory code of practice for pub companies has been announced and great news for publicans that it will enshrine in law the principle that a tied licensee must not be worse of than a free of the licensee.

“The Coalition Government have rightly recognised that the large pubcos systematically take more from pub profits than is fair or sustainable which prevents licensees making a decent living and has closed thousands of pubs. The consultation is open to everyone and we need all those who have suffered from this - licensees, smaller brewers who can’t afford to sell their beer to pubcos and communities who have seen their pubs run into the ground - to take part.

“It is time for a fair deal for our local pubs and a fair deal for the licensees who run them. That means pubco publicans must have the choice to pay market rent only and I hope thousands of people will write to BIS to say this, as the future of thousands of British pubs depends on it.”