Warning '2,000 pubs could close' as landlords turn out the lights

Pub owners have resorted to installing wood burners or lighting candles to save energy as a trade body warns that 2,000 pubs could permanently close without further support.

Joanne Farrell, who has run the Windsor Castle near Stockport for over 15 years, has begun hoovering in the dark to try and reduce electricity usage amid growing concerns that local pubs “will close for good”.

The British Beer and Pub Association (BBPA) has warned that 2,000 pubs could be at risk of shutting down without government support in the Spring Budget, which is due to be announced on 15 March.

In January, the chancellor confirmed there would be a cut to energy bill support for businesses from 1 April.

Even under the current support scheme, operators like Anthony Pender of the Somers Town Coffee House in London’s King’s Cross have already been faced with higher rates.

He said: “In January my gas bill was £4,800 and we had £1,600 government relief. Similar bills were generally around £800 prior to increases. Without relief and at full business rates we would lose money as a venue.”

Emma Shepherd, who runs the Blue Ball Inn in Worrall, Yorkshire, said she had difficulties finding a new fixed rate electricity contract, as one provider quoted a standing charge rate that was a 1,000% increase on her current agreement.

The BBPA has called on the government to freeze duty rates; introduce a significant increase in the discount for draft beer sold in pubs; and implement the reduced rate for lower strength beers from 1 August.

Data from Oxford Economics has predicted that on-trade beer sales will decline by 9% in 2023/4, which equates to 288m fewer pints being sold. It warned that the reduction in sales could lead to 25,000 job losses.

Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the BBPA, said: “It is crucial the government shows in this budget that it understands the pressures the sector is facing and just how much our pubs and breweries mean to communities everywhere across the UK.

“After almost three years of extremely tough trading conditions due to lockdowns, an energy crisis, supply chain disruptions and more, now is a make-or-break moment to save our locals and breweries from failure now in the years to come, we need the Government to act now or risk losing something very special forever.”

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