What about the ties in other trades?

Saturday night in front of the goggle box watching The X Factor or Strictly Come Dancing is fast becoming an institution in many British households.

A few years ago a SWOT analysis of where the threats to pubs might come from would have included supermarkets but probably wouldn't have had Brucie up there. The Lib Dems' Shadow Chancellor Vince Cable is a keen Latin and ballroom dancer and secretly fancies himself on Strictly… It's a fair bet that when Saturday comes Vince is not down at the Duke's Head, but is either perched in front of a 32-inch plasma or pouring over political papers.

Strange, then, that Mr Cable should be so quick to support the Fair Pint campaign. He says: "The tied-pub system goes totally against the idea of competitive markets.

"It is especially damaging at a time like this when pubs are under pressure because of a slowdown in the economy and rising costs."

Unlike most MPs, Vince Cable does at least have some experience of the real world. He was chief economist of Shell. Maybe he's gone through a Damascene conversion. Shell makes much of its money through sales through its retail petrol stations. I quote from its website: "As a self-employed retailer, you'll bring your skills, business approach, enthusiasm and your commitment. We, in return, supply the service stations which are going concerns, the fuel, support and a full retailer training programme.

"We'll work together to grow the business within an honest, open environment. As a self-employed retailer, you'll receive commission on all fuel sales as well as income from all shop and car wash sales. You will be expected to pay agreed royalties to Shell."

Sounds familiar? Isn't this just the sort of tied arrangement that underpins the pub trade?

I've not seen him in the press having a go at his erstwhile employers or other tied franchise arrangements, whether in petrol, pizzas, burgers or printing. Why is it that the tenanted pub industry attracts such political attention?

For all Fair Pint's vociferous lobbying, the simple fact remains that licensees chose to go into their tied arrangement with their pubco in the full knowledge of what it entailed, tie and all.

It takes two to tango, Mr Cable, so here's some Latin for you — caveat emptor.