Licensees finally have their chance to make a stand against alcohol pricing in supermarkets.
The Competition Commission (CC) has stunned the off-trade by - for the first time - naming and shaming 10 supermarket chains for loss-leading with alcohol.
This opens up the real prospect of action against the supermarkets over their bargain basement pricing of beer, wine and spirits.
This week the commission, which is currently investigating supermarkets and whether they distort or restrict competition in the market, issued an interim report, called Emerging Thinking.
It said 10 supermarket chains - Aldi, Asda, the Co-op, Lidl, Morrisons, Netto, Sainsburys, Somerfield, Tesco and Waitrose - were guilty of below-cost selling of alcohol. The commission is now looking for further evidence on this issue from interested parties and is keen to hear from licensees.
Licensee Arthur Grun of the Rose and Crown, Brokenborough, Wiltshire, believes supermarket policies have undermined the market. He said: "To a large extent, I think it's responsible for the binge-drinking problem. There needs to be legislation preventing supermarkets selling below cost."
Mike Benner, chief executive of the Campaign for Real Ale, said: "This proves our point [about the problems of supermarket pricing] perfectly and highlights the urgent need for supermarkets to get their house in order. We will ask our members and consumers to send in submissions. I think, coupled with licensees' complaints, there will be a flood of evidence."
A spokesman for the CC said: "The issue of below-cost selling of alcohol is an extremely serious issue. We are still looking for people to submit evidence and would welcome any relevant submissions."
Send us evidence
The Publican is calling on licensees to send us evidence of the harm supermarket pricing is causing to your pubs and communities.
The CC report means that you finally have a chance to put forward your concerns about supermarket pricing to people who really can make a difference. Let us know how much impact it has had on your trade, on drunk and disorderly behaviour of people coming into your pub and perhaps the impact it has had on your whole community.
We plan to bring all the licensee evidence together and present it to the CC at the start of March.
Please either email your evidence to adamw@thepublican.com or send it to: Adam Withrington, The Publican, Ludgate House, 245 Blackfriars Road, London SE1 9UY.
What the BRC said:
A spokesman for the British Retail Consortium, which represents supermarkets, said: "Alcohol is a competitive area for retailers and competition has pushed prices down. Whether that has led to below-cost selling is unclear and depends largely on how you define below cost.
"As the report makes clear, this competition has not undermined suppliers' profit margins and has significantly benefited consumers, the vast majority of whom consume alcohol in a responsible way."