A report by WPI Strategy and the British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA), reported by The Telegraph earlier this week, argued pubs risk being undervalued by policymakers when assessed mainly through tax receipts, business rates and commercial performance.
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The report suggests regular social interaction in pubs provides a cash equivalent wellbeing value of between £1,000 and £2,000 per pub goer each year, based on Treasury economic models.
With just under a third of UK adults visiting pubs regularly, the report said this implied a total annual wellbeing equivalent value of up to £30bn.
A Government spokesperson told The Morning Advertiser (MA): “We have the right economic plan. We’re backing hospitality by cutting VAT on family attractions and kids meals this summer, reforming business rates, extending World Cup opening hours, and taking action on the cost of living to boost the sector.”
The Government also pointed to wider support measures, including business rates reform for retail, hospitality and leisure properties, caps on some rates bill increases, and increases to the national living wage and national minimum wage.
Social infrastructure
The WPI Strategy and BBPA report argues pubs should be considered part of the country’s social infrastructure, particularly due to their role in tackling loneliness and supporting local communities.
Martin Beck, chief economist at WPI Strategy, said policymakers risked missing much of what makes pubs valuable when they are viewed only through tax receipts, business rates or commercial performance.
He said: “When we think about pubs solely as businesses, we miss much of what makes them valuable.”
Beck added that a pub closure was “not simply the loss of a commercial premises”, but could also mean the loss of a meeting place, support network and part of a community’s social fabric.
The report said traditional cost benefit analysis often places greater weight on outcomes with clear monetary values, such as tax revenue, healthcare costs and productivity gains.
By contrast, outcomes such as happiness, social connection and reduced loneliness are often excluded or treated qualitatively, which the report said could create a bias against policies that deliver wider social benefits.
Closures pressure
The findings come as pubs continue to face pressure from costs, taxation and changing consumer behaviour.
The BBPA has said 161 pubs closed across England, Scotland and Wales in the first three months of this year, following 336 closures in 2025.
Pubs will receive a 15% discount on business rates bills in 2026 to 2027, which the report said would save the average pub £1,650.
However, industry bodies have continued to call for longer term reform across business rates, VAT, beer duty and wider regulation.
The report said the Treasury already had the tools to recognise wellbeing benefits, but said those benefits needed to be given greater weight before more pubs disappeared.
