Get switched on with The Publican

Spiralling energy costs are crippling the licensed trade - and it's time to take action.

The Publican is urging licensees to Get Switched On! and make a stand against the rises in the cost of gas, electricity and water and other utilities bleeding the trade dry.

The major new campaign will seek to give the best advice and tips to licensees on cutting energy costs - and help the industry help itself.

More than eight out of 10 (85 per cent) of licensees have felt the effects of rising energy costs this year, according to research from purchasing consortium Beacon.

But one in three say they are still in the dark over how to bag energy savings in the face of price rises such as the recent 22 per cent hike from British Gas.

Among the brewers and pub companies, Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries said the impact of higher energy prices was a major factor behind it deciding to transfer 93 managed pubs to tenancies last week.

And the governor of the Bank of England Mervyn King has become the latest figure to highlight the issue, claiming rising energy costs are likely to push up inflation.

Now The Publican is planning to show licensees the way forward with a wealth of advice, case studies and pointers as to how licensees can save money.

Caroline Nodder, The Publican's editor, said: "Pubs are being hit from all sides at the moment by legislation, red tape and rising costs and the massive increase in energy prices is the final straw. The Publican's new initiative, Get Switched On!, is aimed at tackling the problem head on, helping licensees and operators make immediate savings."

Andy Brooks, licensee at the Laughing Fish at Isfield in West Sussex, said he was backing The Publican's campaign.

"We've done things recently such as switching to low energy light bulbs throughout the pub," he said. "We are constantly trying to remember to do the basic things like turning lights off. Much of it is common sense. "Our average electricity bill is £300 a month and water is about £120 a month. Cut that by 10 per cent and you're saving quite a bit of money."

Frank Dupree of the Cabbage Patch in Twickenham, Middlesex said: "I've been in the trade for 30 years and keeping costs down is a constant battle. "As much as anything it's a question of training the staff. The cleaners here come in to clean the bar and leave all the lights on including the outside lights. But they don't pay the energy bills do they?"

Alistair Darby, managing director of WDB Brands, said: "There is an ever increasing demand for pubs to be lit well, to be warm and comfortable inside and for external lighting outside. The demand for energy in every aspect of the pub has grown over the past 20 years.

"But there are solutions from very significant projects down to very cheap projects. Publicans mustn't assume that the only solutions cost money. There are commercial reasons and ethical reasons for why we should be more efficient on energy."

Check thePublican.com next week for stage one of the campaign.