The Protecting Ashfield’s Pubs motion will be proposed at Ashfield District Council’s meeting on Monday 27 July by Hucknall North councillor Gordon Mann and seconded by Hucknall Central councillor Lee Waters.
It calls for the council to take practical steps locally while also pressing Westminster to address the national pressures putting pubs at risk.
Councillor Mann described pubs as an important part of the UK’s social fabric.
He said: “Most of us can name a pub that has been part of our community for years. They are places where people meet friends, celebrate birthdays, watch the football, raise money for local causes or simply have a conversation with somebody.”
Important role
He added pubs provide “real employment opportunities”, particularly for young people gaining their first jobs and developing confidence and experience.
Mann further highlighted the role pubs play in supporting farmers as well as food producers and suppliers, as well as providing venues for live music.
The proposed motion urged council leaders to introduce an Ashfield Pub Protection Plan, which would include help finding grants, licensing support, promoting pubs through local events and making it easier for licensees to access advice in a bid to stem pub closures.
“When a pub closes, the community loses far more than a building. We lose jobs, social space and another piece of local character,” Mann added.
The plan would also help residents protect valued local pubs by exploring whether they could be given special community status, giving people more time to act if a pub is put up for sale.
Squeezed harder
This comes after a proposed Community Right to Buy scheme in Wales was last week hailed as a potential “game-changer” by the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA)
Councillors said local publicans, residents and community groups, including CAMRA, would continue to be consulted on where support was most needed in Ashfield.
Outside of Ashfield, the motion also called on the council to write to the Government demanding long-term reform of business rates, VAT, beer duty and wider hospitality taxation.
Councillor Mann added: “Once a good local pub has gone, it is rarely brought back. We should act before more communities are left regretting what they have lost.”
Meanwhile, councillor Waters stressed independent operators had been “squeezed harder and harder”, adding politicians had offered “warm words and very little else”.
He continued: “Independent landlords work long hours, take the risks, employ local people and help keep our communities alive.”
