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Prime Minister urged to help pubsPrime Minister urged to help pubs
Letter from award-winning pub urges Gordon Brown to help the licensed trade
A desperate licensee has written to the Prime Minister to demand that something is done to stop supermarkets undercutting pubs.
Irene Nuttall, who runs the Durham Ox in Longridge, Preston - winner of The Publican's Freehouse of the Year award - has urged Gordon Brown to step in and help the industry before more pubs are forced to close.
She wrote: “It seems to me that the main culprit in the demise of our trade is large supermarkets being allowed to sell our products at incredibly low prices.
“Large supermarkets are killing off trade in small towns and villages. They are running riot and no-one seems to care about small businesses who are hitting the wall at an incredible rate.”
Irene also highlighted the rise in business rates, and the rise in beer and spirit taxes as major contributors to the problems the industry is facing.
And she isn’t alone in petitioning the government over the state of the industry.
John McNamara, BII chief executive, has voiced his concerns about the adverse effects of the smoking ban in a letter to the Chancellor, Alastair Darling, detailing the results of a recent BII survey.
“Members report overall income down 9.8 per cent, and machine income down 13.5 per cent” he said. “As an industry we ask no favours. We simply ask to be treated fairly and recognised as responsible contributors to the nation’s fabric.”
He has requested an appointment with Darling to discuss the results of the survey in detail.
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