Some readers will be aware that a few months ago I started a campaign to encourage people to drink a pint a week in their local pub every week. In the face of some of the harshest tax and regulation of any businesses worldwide, the pub industry is in dire need of support. The campaign has taken me to many of our beautiful pubs across the constituency where I have heard the same story from landlords time and again. It is a fact that by the time alcohol duty, various taxes and import costs are accounted for, the profit on the sale of a pint, is truly just in the head.
In touring our pubs, another narrative has become clear, the plight of small breweries. In my constituency we are blessed by the incredible Brentwood Brewing Company, who I visited last week. There I met with a representative of SIBA who advocate for small breweries. He told me they often can’t sell their beers because tenanted landlords are bound to exclude all but the largest producers from the taps, and when the pub is a free house, the large producers lock landlords into exclusive purchasing agreements. Their proposal is to change the regulation so that tenanted pubs can chose a guest beer to have on beside the larger producers. Not only is this good for small and local businesses, it is a good idea for getting people down the pub, and a great idea if, like me, you are a fan of a locally brewed beer.
I will be sending their proposals on to the minister and look forward to continuing my tour of our pubs which, hopefully soon, will all be serving a locally brewed pint. So, please, drink a pint a week in a local pub!
