Trade union hits out at pubcos

Trade union GMB has added its voice to calls for an end to the beer tie, pointing to figures showing more than 1,000 pubco-owned pubs have closed in the last three years.

A study by the union found that since December 2005, 1,131 pubs, owned by seven pub companies, have shut.

The highest number of closures came in the West Midlands, where 232 stopped trading over the period.

The North West had the second highest number, with 137, followed by the South East.

Paul Kenny, general secretary of the GMB, which has nearly 600,000 members, claimed some pubcos were "overcharging" licensees by up to 80p a pint to pay off their interest charges.

"It is this overcharging which is killing the pubs and driving them out of business," he said.

"The pubcos are blaming everyone else for the problem and not looking at the damage they have caused."

He called on the government and MPs to look again at the industry and the way it operates.

"This measure would have a lot more impact than changing the rate of taxes in the forthcoming budget," he said.

Steve Corbett, a tied publican who is a member of the Fair Pint campaign, said: "Publicans tied to pubcos are suffering badly from a combination of high rents and outrageous wholesale prices charged by 'pubcos'.

"This is causing pubs to close and jobs to be lost at a rate that it is totally unacceptable.

"It's vital for pubs, consumers and communities that the government listens to the GMB and the Fair Pint Campaign."