BrewDog to close six bars as co-founder criticises 'zombie government'

Scottish brewer BrewDog is to close six of its UK bars due to rising costs, with its co-founder calling on the government to “get a grip” on the crisis.

James Watt (pictured) said reality was starting to “bite hard” for hospitality and criticised inaction from the “zombie government”.

Watt wrote on LinkedIn today (31 August): “Last night we confirmed we were to close six bars around the UK and it is heart-breaking to lose these locations.

“I warned a few weeks ago, costs are rising to such a degree, with no prospect of any help from a clueless government, that these very difficult decisions have to be made.

“It was going to be simply impossible to get these bars even close to financial viability in the foreseeable future. We had no choice but to close them.”

All affected staff have been offered roles in nearby BrewDog bars, but Watt said he hoped the closure was not “a sign of things to come”. It has not bee confirmed which bars will be closing.

Business leaders from across the hospitality industry have warned rising energy bills could cause more damage to the sector than the pandemic, with many venues seeing price hikes of over 300%.

Watt said the opening of BrewDog’s largest ever bar in London’s Waterloo earlier this month had been a success and welcomed over 20,000 visitors in the first two weeks.

But he called on Conservative leadership candidates Liz Truss and Rishi Sunak to “stop the charade” of the contest and tackle the problems facing the sector.

“[It’s] important the success of Waterloo doesn’t blind us all to the reality we as a sector are facing, nor to the sheer ‘rabbit in the headlights’ paralysis of this zombie government, still intent on this bizarre leadership farce, instead of getting to grips with the kind of challenges that will result in more business causalities than the pandemic did.”

Watt added: “If nothing happens the UK looks set to lose half of its pubs and bars and all the millions of jobs these locations provide, as well as the vital role they play in local communities.”

The government has said it will not introduce new policy until after the new prime minister is selected on 5 September.

Ministers met today to discuss "preparatory work" for tackling pressures this winter. The government said the Treasury and business department were preparing "options" for the incoming administration on possible energy market interventions to tackle rising costs.