Greene King reveals 30% rent concession for Scottish and Welsh tied pubs

24-Dec-2021 - Last updated on 24-Dec-2021 at 15:52 GMT

Pubco aid: Greene King Pub Partners boss Wayne Shurvinton wrote to tenants in Wales and Scotland about the rent concession

Pub company Greene King is introducing 30% rent concessions for tied tenants in Scotland and Wales from Boxing Day.

Greene King, which has two tenanted pubs in Wales and more than 100 in Scotland, Pub Partners managing director Wayne Shurvinton wrote to tenants, informing them of the announcement.

In light of the restrictions placed on pubs in Scotland and Wales, the company said it had reviewed the situation on rents and it is also intending to postpone any Covid-related debt repayment plans that may currently be in place.

Furthermore, the concession will remain in place for the foreseeable future, whether a pub is open or closed.

Rent review

It went on to say if greater restrictions are brought in at any stage, including a legal requirement to close, Greene King will review the rent support and update tenants.

In Wales, rules from Boxing Day for pubs will include the rule of six and face masks. The Welsh Government has announced the rules are a revised version of alert level two, in a bid to tackle the spread of the Omicron variant.

The measures mean a requirement of 2-metre social distancing where reasonable as well as licensed premises being required to do table service and collecting customer contact details.

For Scottish pubs, restrictions in hospitality venues were announced that for a three-week period from 27 December, including a return to table service-only for sites serving alcohol, one-metre distancing between groups and there should be no more than three households represented in any group.

Particularly cruel

The Morning Advertiser understands Greene King is monitoring the situation in England closely and should similar restrictions to those in place in Scotland and Wales come into force, the company would do the right thing.

Shurvinton said: “This isn’t the Christmas we hoped for a few weeks ago and it’s particularly cruel that Omicron has hit the UK at such a critical trading period.

“However, I do hope the support from Government as well as our own support will put you in the strongest position possible to bounce back next year, once restrictions are lifted.”

Industry adviser Phil Dixon said: “This is welcome news for Scottish and Welsh publicans and it is good to see Greene King being very proactive again within the big six companies.”

In January this year, Greene King had estimated its total financial aid provided since the start of the pandemic in March 2020 was more than £25m.