The ability to run a pub - as a successful and valuable business for pubgoers, beer lovers and the wider community - is in crisis.
Also, the Government’s national insurance price hikes risk forcing even more pubs to close for good.
Our own data shows 303 pubs across Britain closed already this year, even before additional costs kick in, proving that the on-trade is in need of serious Government support.
We dread to see the closure figures as a result of the Government changes starting this month.
Those closures have come before publicans face increased employer national insurance contributions and a big cut in business rates relief for pubs in England – both coming into force this month. Instead, the industry needs financial reform and dedicated support from governments in all four nations of the UK.
How can any licensee run a fair and sustainable business during the current economic instability that seems to be targeting pubs? We dread to see the closure figures as a result of the Government changes starting this month.
CAMRA continues to campaign for the rights of each and every pub, consumer and independent brewer and cider maker across the UK.
Financial tensions
While financial tensions are high, some of our key campaigns to bring fundamental industry changes are in the works.
The access to market review for independent brewers, that is being carried out by officials from the Department for Business and Trade, could see pubs and brewers serving more great quality beer from small and independent producers to consumers, helping to make small and medium sized brewing businesses more sustainable.
With the current stranglehold giant global brewing companies hold over the market, the beers brewed by independent producers barely get on any pub’s bar.
The pubs code for England and Wales is due to be reviewed by the Government this summer and we’re calling for dedicated guest beer rights for tied tenants to choose the beer they serve on their bars, free-of-tie and with a choice of beer and cider from independent and local producers to improve choice and satisfy consumer demand for distinctive and tasty brews.
It’s not just breweries that need support.
We know it’s possible. Landmark campaigning over many years has secured a similar guest beer right for the Scottish pubs code coming into force this month, which we hope will see huge results for pubs, consumers and independents in Scotland.
In Northern Ireland the recent independent review of the alcohol licensing system is clear that restrictive licensing laws and the ‘surrender principle’ need ditching and dragging into the 21st century.
The NI Executive needs to commit to reform to ensure innovation in the local beer and pubs market, and to deliver a diversity of pubs, social clubs and brewery taprooms for locals and tourists alike.
It’s not just breweries that need support. Consumers, publicans and independent brewers recognise the value of being part of a community, which is why we increasingly see people in local areas coming together to save endangered pubs.
Scheme potential
But in December 2024, the Government closed the Community Ownership Fund, a vital grant to help communities buy locals that are at risk of closure, conversion or demolition.
While the Government’s new ‘Community Right to Bid’, which will be implemented as part of the English Devolution Bill later this year, has the potential to be an effective scheme, communities need a replacement of the Community Ownership Fund, along with support and advice packages, to actually carry out the community pub-saving process.
Pubs bring people together.
Consumers deserve the right to save their locals, so future generations can also enjoy the pubgoing experience.
Publicans have the right to receive fairer a deal when it comes to the burden of business rates and national insurance contributions, so they can keep their doors open. And independent brewers deserve a fair crack of the whip to get their beers, including cask beer, into the limelight.
Pubs bring people together; they have proven wellbeing benefits for communities by tackling loneliness and social isolation.
Good pubs and the great staff that work in them encourage consumers to learn more about the pints they serve and offer more choice and offer a safer, more beneficial experience of enjoying a pint with other people rather than drinking cheap supermarket alcohol at home.
The new lower business rates multiplier that the Government has promised to deliver in England for retail, hospitality and leisure in 2026/27 has the potential to be a game changer for pubs, but how many of these venues will we lose in the meantime?
And where are similar commitments to introduce fairer business rates systems for pubs from the Northern Ireland, Scottish and Welsh Governments?
The sooner decision makers realise how significant and valuable the benefits that pubs serve in each and every community across the UK, the sooner we might begin to see more thriving pub businesses instead of yet more sad statistics in closure data reports.
