Pubs Minister meets Licensees Unite

Pubs minister John Healey met with the president of Licensees Unite today at his pub in Manchester, as part of his fact-finding tour of pubs.

Paul Naylor, president of the 10,000-strong union which represents licensed house managers, met with Healey, his local MP Paul Goggins, and Joseph Holt's operations director Tom Dempsey, at his pub the Legh Arms in Sale. 

"We spoke on a broad range of things," said Naylor, "including business rates, tied agreements, supermarket beer prices and Unite's manifesto."

Healey stayed for about an hour and had a pint with Naylor, who manages the Joseph Holt venue. 

"We also talked about how to help pubs diversify, about Sky and showing football and fruit machine incomes," he said. 

"I thought he came across very well. He's been given a job to do by Gordon Brown, and he's trying to find out as much as he can about the trade, including understanding the problems with the tie, managed pubs, National Pubwatch's court not caution campaign and underage drinking. 

"We also talked about how pubs are part of the solution, not the problem, when it comes to binge drinking." 

Morning Advertiser understands that Healey plans to visit a number of pubs as part of a fact-finding mission prior to coming up with a package of practical measures to help stop pubs closing within the next few weeks. 

Measures are thought to include revisions to planning policy, tax breaks, tenants' right to buy threatened pubs, and reducing unnecessary regulation for licensees.

A follow-up meeting with Naylor and Healey has been arranged, which Unite national officer Jennie Formby will also attend. 

Licensees Unite was known as the National Association for Licensed House Managers (NALHM), before it became part of larger union Unite.