Supporting pubs turns out to be a golden ticket

We can all go back to getting on with our lives, leaving the political navel gazing to those in the media who will pick over the bones of the election for the next few months.

The “closest to call” general election for generations turned out to be nothing of the sort, and it was back to business as usual following the previous coalition blip.

Those who woke up fearing an unholy alliance of communist, woad-wearing barbarian hordes, with a dash of Farage on the side, were left disappointed that their Daily Mail-esque fantasies had failed to come true and will probably return to baiting Guardian readers online.

So what does all this mean for you, the pub operator? Well, judging from our pre-election survey of the sector, I imagine there’s quite a lot of you out there that woke up quite happily on Friday 8 May, and those of you who expressed a preference for having a pint with Farage may find him more accommodating on that front, now he has a little more time on his hands...

What else have we learnt from the bun-fight of last week? Well, it would appear that while his Liberal Democrat colleagues were being massacred left, right and centre, Greg Mulholland proved more resilient than most, and clung onto his Leeds seat, although with a much reduced majority — while the students might not be too happy with his party on the matter of fees, his pub campaigning probably helped tick a few boxes.

In fact, it would appear that pub support proved to be something of a golden ticket when it came to this election, with Andrew Griffiths, Kris Hopkins and Toby Perkins all surviving. That might prove a double-edged sword if more MPs cotton on to the fact and start showing a greater interest in the pub sector!

What this will mean for our industry going forwards remains to be seen. As I write, we’re still waiting to see who will be named pubs minister, will the previously maligned Kris Hopkins hang on to his post, or will we see fresh blood?

Most importantly, will Cameron, now with his hands fully on the reins, continue to commit to his previous pledge of being the most pub-friendly government yet, or will the lack of restraint from his former Lib-Dem colleagues see greater sway being given to the hovering property developers, eagerly eyeing up those prime pub sites for the latest convenience store/housing estate opportunity.

Time will tell.

Speaking of time, I hope you’ve not missed out on the opportunity to enter our Great British Pub Awards, as the entry deadline of 22 May is fast approaching. If you’re running a great pub, prove it by entering our awards! Getting through as a finalist, let alone winning your category, is a great opportunity to showcase how good your business is, build a greater profile with your customers, increase your trade, and boost your profits.

So what are you waiting for? Just do it. Visit www.greatbritishpubawards.co.uk now.