Twilight of the pubs

Am I alone in thinking that modern politicians do not much care for pubs? They are happy to be photographed pulling a pint during an election campaign and have no problem drinking subsidised pints in the House of Commons bars, but there is something about the spontaneity, earthiness and insobriety of the traditional British boozer that sits uneasily with their vision of a regimented society. If the political class are not deliberately trying to undermine the pub trade, they are doing a good job of doing it accidentally.

In the first six months of 2024, pubs were closing at the rate of fifty a month. The total number of pubs in Britain has fallen by 14 per cent since the start of the pandemic. Pubs find themselves in a vicious downward spiral. To compensate for having fewer customers, they have raise the price of a pint, but higher prices mean that even fewer people walk through the door and so prices rise again. Drinking in a pub has for centuries been a great leveller. Everyone could afford to do it. It has increasingly become a luxury leisure activity.

After the exodus of daytime drinkers following the 2007 smoking ban, many pubs cut costs by reducing their opening hours. With the triple whammy of higher energy costs, higher food prices and above-inflation hikes of the minimum wage, some of them have now reduced the number of days they trade and many are closing long before 11.20pm. A survey by industry analysts CGA recently found that third of operators have reduced their trading hours due to cost pressures in the last year.

 

Read the rest at the Telegraph.