Pubs to lose out on £80m bank holiday pint sales

While British operators will serve 42m pints over the long weekend, continued restrictions mean pubs are still turning customers away.

The estimate comes from the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA), which has warned trade is still hampered by Covid-19 measures despite a positive first week of indoor trading.

Pubs will miss out on £80m in revenue from pint sales this weekend, down 34% on revenue for pre-pandemic spring bank holiday weekends.

Operators are hopeful stringent rules such as one metre plus social distancing, the rule of six and mandated table service will be done away with next month.

However, concerns have been raised about a highly transmissible strain of coronavirus first identified in India with ministers admitting they are watching the numbers closely.​

Surviving or thriving

Ministers will announce a decision on 14 June about the viability of reopening up the hospitality sector fully on 21 June.

The BBPA has called on the Government to stick to its 21 June goal, pointing to the country’s successful vaccination rollout.

BBPA boss Emma McClarkin said: “Revenues for pubs this bank holiday weekend will be £80m lower than normal when it comes to beer sales. That is a huge amount of money and could be the difference between surviving or thriving for thousands of pubs in communities across the country."

While 95% of UK pubs were open, businesses could not survive under the present restrictions, McClarkin added.

Some 2,000 pubs were unable to reopen when indoor service was permitted to resume (Monday 17 May) because of their size, the CEO explained.

McClarkin added: “As more and more people get their vaccine, and if reports continue to suggest that the Indian variant is less prevalent than originally believed, all restrictions must be removed in pubs on June 21st as per the Government’s own roadmap.

“Pubs only have a fighting chance of recovering from more than a year of lockdowns and restrictions if they can fully reopen as normal.”