Macmillan 'Go Sober’ campaign ‘could damage autumn pub trade’

Frank Murphy, owner of the Pot Still in Glasgow, claimed Macmillan Cancer Support’s Go Sober for October campaign was a threat to the livelihood of pubs at a vulnerable time of the year.

In an open letter to the charity, he said: “I fail to understand why Macmillan would threaten the business of every licensed premises across the UK.

“Macmillan has until now tended to encourage donors to do more — running, trekking, swimming, golfing — and this extra activity is good for everyone, the donor and the charity. But this campaign is different.

Charity nights​

“It encourages people to stop purchasing from a sector of the economy that could do without this cashflow worry in the quiet month before the build-up to Christmas.”

Murphy added that charities have, for many years, reaped the benefits of charity nights run by pubs.

His view was backed up by Rob Scahill, licensee at the Orange Tree in Baldock, Hertfordshire, who said: “As much as I have the greatest respect for Macmillan, I hope industry bodies write to them and suggest they choose campaigns in future that don’t put hundreds of thousands of jobs at risk.”

Outrage was also rife on the Publican’s Morning Advertiser's​ Facebook page.

In response, a Macmillan spokesperson said that the initiative doesn’t mean that people have to stop their normal social routines during that time.

She said: “This may or may not include going to the pub and they can, of course, still purchase non-alcoholic beverages and food.”

The spokesperson added: “While Go Sober for October is aimed at social drinkers and may affect the amount of alcohol consumed in pubs throughout October, we are not encouraging long-term teetotallers or asking people to give up alcohol forever, merely to abstain for a month.”