‘We can use Brexit to save future of the British pub’

THE GOVERNMENT is being urged to use Brexit to safeguard the future of the traditional British pub.

The Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) said the Government will have the freedom to cut beer duty in pubs after the UK leaves the European Union. The move would level the playing field between the price of beer sold in supermarkets, according to Camra.

Jackie Parker, the chairman of Camra, said: “Pubs are a very important part of our national culture, and are valuable community assets which help combat loneliness and social isolation.

“A lower beer duty rate for pubs could be an absolute gamechanger in keeping our pubs open as well as encouraging responsible drinking in a social setting.”

A Treasury spokesman said that, in recognition of the important contribution made by pubs to British society, the Government has frozen taxes on beer, cider and spirits again this year. The spokesman added: “We’re supporting an industry that employs 900,000 people across the UK.”

Britain’s managed pub and restaurant groups saw sales slump in January after a strong Christmas, according to the latest figures from the Coffer Peach Business Tracker,

THE COFFER Peach Tracker industry sales monitor for the UK pub, bar and restaurant sector collects and analyses performance data from 49 operating groups, with a combined turnover of more than £9bn.

RSM’s head of leisure and hospitality, Paul Newman, said: “We expect discretionary spending on eating and drinking out to remain constrained as Brexit uncertainty continues to weigh on consumer sentiment.”

Total sales across the 49 companies in the Tracker, which include the effect of net new openings since this time last year, were ahead by 0.4 per cent compared with last January. Underlying like-for-like growth for the Tracker cohort was running at 1.2 per cent for the 12 months to the end of January.