Welsh MP tables motion for boycott of brewing giant's products
A Welsh MP is calling on licensees to boycott Carlsberg-Tetley (C-T) products as part of a campaign to restore brewing in Wrexham.
Martyn Jones, MP for Clwyd South, is angry at the closure of the Wrexham Brewery by C-T last April and wants to see Wrexham Lager returned to its traditional home in Wales.
He has now tabled an Early Day Motion in the House of Commons asking for Carlsberg lager to be banned from Westminster bars and is also calling on publicans to refuse to stock C-T products "where contractually possible".
Since the brewery closed, the Wrexham Lager brand has been brewed in Blackburn and Leeds.
Mr Jones' constituency borders on Wrexham, and he himself worked at the brewery as a microbiologist before being elected to Parliament.
A local consortium had been negotiating to buy the Wrexham Lager brand and bring it home with the support of the Welsh Development Agency. Mr Jones has accused the brewing giant of "stringing along" the consortium, although C-T spokeswoman Donna Creswell said the negotiations were still progressing.
"We've been waiting for a response to our asking price, so we were surprised to read that the consortium believes the talks are over. As far as we're concerned, the door is still open," she said.
The consortium has discussed either buying or leasing the Wrexham brand from Carlsberg, and setting up a microbrewery-style operation on the decommissioned site.
So far 20 MPs have signed the Early Day Motion, in which Mr Jones accused C-T of "procrastination and obfustication" over the negotiations.
Mr Jones said: "Carlsberg clearly doesn't want Wrexham Lager, but it doesn't want anyone else to own it either. In Denmark, Carlsberg prides itself on being a defender of heritage and tradition, yet over here it is quite prepared to ride roughshod over this cornerstone of British brewing history."
The proposed motion calls for all products produced by C-T to be withdrawn from the Commons bars, as well as calling on MPs and publicans to support the wider boycott. Carlsberg is currently the best selling lager in the House of Commons.