The industry's Red Tape Group has called on ministers to relieve the burden of legislation on licensees following two damning reports last week.
A report from the National Audit Office (NAO) has demanded that ministers improve the way they assess the impact of regulations on small businesses.
It says government departments should consider not regulating in some instances and should take into account the costs of new legislation.
In another report, the British Chambers of Commerce (BCC) estimated that government red tape is costing British businesses an extra £30bn a year.
Kate Nicholls, spokeswoman for the Red Tape Group, said: "The NAO is a well respected independent body and the government should be shamed into action. The pub industry bears a large share of that £30bn cost.
"These reports are a damning indictment on the record of this government. We feel they add weight to our cause."The group has already revealed that licensees have been burdened with 153 new pieces of legislation since Labour came into power six years ago.
It is pressing for a statutory review of the costs of all new legislation to be carried out two years after its implementation. It also wants to ensure that pre-legislative impact assessments are more rigorous and unforeseen costs are addressed.
MP Brian Cotter, the Liberal Democrats' small business spokesman, said: "More attention must be paid to the cumulative impact that individual regulations have on business.
"The burden of employment regulation costs a large firm around £5 a year per employee, but for small businesses, the financial impact is £288 per employee.
"The Liberal Democrats believe that impact assessments should be carried out independently of the department sponsoring the legislation, to allow tougher appraisals of whether each regulation is necessary."
BCC director general David Frost said: "The government must simplify the UK's regulatory framework and properly assess both the costs and the benefits of new regulations."
Red tape that has already affected licensees:
- 48-hour working week
- paid annual leave
- disciplinary and grievance procedures
- national minimum wage
- Disability Discrimination Act
- National Insurance
- VAT and business rates
- food hygiene.
'Tax junkie'
Last week Conservative Party leader Michael Howard lambasted Chancellor Gordon Brown as a "tax and regulation junkie" addicted to raising revenue by tax and imposing extra red tape on businesses.