Daily Mail hits back - but pledges a rethink

The Daily Mail has agreed to look again at its "Say No To 24-Hour Pubs" campaign after The Publican launched a pub trade boycott of the paper last week.

The call for industry action was prompted by Publican readers following the Mail's constant slamming of the trade in the run-up to the new licensing regime.

In a call to The Publican, a spokesman for the newspaper claimed it was "not against 24-hour pubs, but against 24-hour drinking" and stated that it was a long-time supporter of pubs.

However, when questioned as to why its campaign was called "Say No To 24-Hour Pubs", the spokesman - a senior member of the Mail's management team - admitted that The Publican "had made a very good point" and that it "would address that".

The spokesman said the Mail had "nothing against pubs and had written frequently of the essential part they play in many communities".

"What concerns the Mail, along with police, medical authorities, religious and community leaders, many politicians and even quite a few publicans, are the social consequences of round-the-clock drinking," he said.

"The Publican's own surveys reveal the Daily Mail is the favourite newspaper of the pub trade. We believe this is one issue which should be freely debated in all the bars of the land."

The Publican's campaign has certainly struck a chord with readers, with more than 100 contacting us to tell us they are throwing out the newspaper in protest at its coverage of the pub trade - although a handful have said that they disagree.

David Drew of the Marlborough Arms in Cheshire said: "We've always had the Daily Mail and the Mail on Sunday on the rack in the pub. I've got my copy of The Publican in this morning and I've just rung up to cancel them."

All Publican readers' comments on the issue will be forwarded on to the editor of the Daily Mail next week.

The Publican is giving readers a new chance to take action against the newspaper by cutting out a "Say No To The Daily Mail" poster. See page eight of next week's newspaper, dated September 19, for details.