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Outlaw cut-price booze to save pubs

I WAS surprised to read in The Argus that Caroline Lucas has raised a motion defending pub landlords (January 17). I hope this means her Green Party will drop their manifesto commitment to increase alcohol taxes by 50%. Around 30 pubs close in the UK each week, due in part to the competition they face from supermarkets selling alcohol below cost price.

A large, indiscriminate rise in alcohol pricing would be extremely detrimen-tal to Brighton’s night-time economy. Small independent pubs, the very ones Ms Lucas professes to support, would be most at risk. It would do little to tackle the issues of binge drinking and pre-loading. It is a regressive tax which will make a trip to the local a thing of the past for many on a tight budget.

Problem drinking affects all income brackets. By outlawing the selling of alcohol at below cost price by supermarkets, we can reverse the decline of our local pubs. And in giving clear advice on respons-ible drinking, the public should be allowed to make their own informed choices, rather than be dictated to.

Caroline Penn, Ventnor Villas, Hove


Comments (2)

27/01/12

Fight Back says...

It's not true that supermarkets sell alcohol as loss leaders. If that were really the case how come Off Licences are actually cheaper ? Four cans of premium larger in a supermarket costs about £4.50 and that's for a can of 440ml. Meanwhile, in an Off Licence, six cans of the same larger costs £6 and the cans are 500ml. A bottle of wine in the supermarkets costs about £6. The same wine in an off licence costs £8 for two bottles.

Don't blame the supermarkets ( or even the Off Licences ) for the decline of the pub, blame the greedy breweries wanting over £4 a pint. You could buy over 3 1/2 pints from an Off Licence for that price.

31/01/12

Anna Hughes says...

This is a bit of a misrepresentation of the Green Party.

The actual wording from GP policy is "Gradually increase alcohol and tobacco taxes by about 50% to match anticipated increases in expenditures on the NHS, raising. £1.4bn in 2010 rising to £5.6bn in 2013" It's hardly a large, indiscriminate rise.

You might be interested to know that the Green Party passed a motion in Autumn 2010 to support the CAMRA pub goers' charter, as it believes that "The pub and brewing industries are in crisis. Every day seven pubs close and small brewing companies struggle to find business, while the market is dominated by four global companies. Tie licensees can currently only buy a limited range of beer at prices inflated by around 40%. This restricts pub goers’ choice, prevents small local brewers selling to such pubs and hastens pub closures. We believe that an effective approach to reduce alcohol related harm must involve support for good community pubs which provide a safe and responsible place for people to drink."

The full policy is here: http://policy.greenp
arty.org.uk/rops (scroll down a little way).

I think you need to do a bit more research before you imply that Ms Lucas is contradicting herself. Policy is to support local, community pubs, while recognising that alcohol abuse is a massive societal problem and a strain on the NHS. The proposed 50% tax would be a step to addressing this.