PRESS RELEASE
Campaign for Pubs
#6PointstoSavePubs: 6 key things needed to save beloved community locals
Some of the #6PointstoSavePubs involve ongoing support from Government, but others are support needed from pubcos and other pub owners, who rent pubs, many of whom are charging excessive rents. The Campaign for Pubs has written to the Secretary of State for Business Alok Sharma asking the Government to intervene to stop the #PubRentRipOff which is currently a huge problem for many pubs.
The 6 Points to Save Pubs are:
- A mandatory rent code & statutory rent review
- A rent-free period for all pubs
- Furlough where pubs can’t trade
- VAT of 5% for hospitality
- Ongoing business rates relief for pubs until a reformed system comes in
- 12-month ban on all change of use
The 6 Points to Save Pubs calls for a mandatory Covid-19 rent code for to stop the exploitation of (all) tenants not the weak voluntary code produced by the Government, and also calls for a statutory right to a rent review for all pub tenants, all of whom will be facing restrictions on their ability to trade.
The Campaign welcomes the financial support given to many pubs so far, but much of it is not going where it needs to go. Some pub-owners, including regulated pubcos, have relentlessly demanded that publicans hand over Government COVID-19 support grants in full or partial rent, denying those pubs a vital financial lifeline whilst closed and with zero revenue. In addition, many larger pubs were excluded from receiving any grant at all. The Campaign for Pubs backs the #RaisetheBar campaign which advocates grants for pubs of all sizes. The Campaign for Pubs, as well as campaigning to stop the #PubRentRipOff also supports the #NoPubNoRent and #NationalRentFree #NationalTimeOut campaigns against the continued scandal of punitive rent demands for closed pubs.
In addition, with pubs now facing the very real threat that property owners and large pubcos will look to close and redevelop many pubs at this difficult time, a 12-month moratorium on all change of use for pubs is called for to protect and preserve valued community locals up and down the country. This is especially vital considering the very worrying recent news that the Government is considering moving to a “zonal” planning system where key decisions are taken away from local councils and handed to development corporations, something opposed by the Campaign for Pubs.
The Campaign for Pubs is urging all pub lovers to back the #6PointstoSavePubs to stop many pub closures – and to call on their MPs and the Government to back them too – and save pubs.
The Campaign for Pubs exists to provide a real voice for pubs, bringing together publicans, customers and brewers and allow who love pubs and value our pub culture. The Campaign for Pubs campaigns for a better, freer and fairer, more sustainable pub sector as laid out in the mission statement. The Campaign for Pubs costs £25 a year to join, or £40 for a couple and members become part of a national network of those who care about pubs and their future.
Commenting, Paul Crossman, Chair of the Campaign for Pubs said:
“We need Government and others to really acknowledge and address very real threat currently facing thousands of much-loved community pubs up and down the country. Whilst some pubs are now open, others cannot and all are facing reduced trade going forward. So we urge the Government to listen and act and back the Campaign for Pubs #6PointstoSavePubs. We also urge all who value pubs to join the Campaign for Pubs and to help us get the message to MPs that we need real action now in order to save the UK’s hugely important and beloved community locals”.
Commenting, Dawn Hopkins, Vice-Chair of the Campaign for Pubs said:
“It is welcome that some pubs can open, but all publicans have faced no trade and no income for months, yet costs have continued and pub-owning companies and other pub-owners have continued to charge commercial rent which is outrageous. We need real action now to stop publicans being forced out of their pubs and to stop pubs being developed and converted. So we urge everyone who values pubs, publicans and their customers, to back the #6PointstoSavePubs!”
Commenting, Campaign Director of the Campaign for Pubs, Greg Mulholland said:
“The reality is that the pubs need support going forward from the Government and sector if we want to preserve the Great British Pub and our pub culture that is famous all over the world. Already publicans are being forced out of pubs through rent demands, and soon unscrupulous developers and pubcos will inevitably be looking to develop and convert pubs. This must be stopped via a 12-month ban on any change of use. We now need concerted action from the Government and from the pub sector to save pubs and preserve a hugely important part of our country’s history and heritage. The Campaign for Pubs #6PointstoSavePubs is what is needed to do this”.
ENDS