British Pubs in Crisis as Closures Accelerate

Chains securing the doors of a closed Fuller's pub in London on Jan. 28, 2021. PA

The rate of pubs shutting down is accelerating at a faster rate than immediately after the end of COVID-19 lockdowns, according to new figures.

Government data indicate a significant surge in pub closures, with 51 shutting down each month during the first financial quarter of 2023.

In 2022, after the UK emerged from COVID-19 lockdowns, 32 pubs were lost on average each month, with 386 pubs closing in total.

The data released on Tuesday by the commercial real estate intelligence firm Altus Group, found that the overall number of pubs in England and Wales dropped even more at the end of the first quarter of this year.

Landlords are facing mounting pressure as they contend with multiple challenges such as skyrocketing energy costs, rising food prices, and weakened consumer demand.

The end of government energy support for non-households’ energy bills is also set to kick in.

Over the first three months of 2023, 150 pubs called last orders in English and Welsh communities, which is up nearly 60 percent on last year’s figures.

Closed pubs face being demolished or converted into offices.

A workers picks up draft barrels of beer from a horse-drawn delivers to a pub where they serve different beers including the newly made pale ale beer for the Queens Jubilee Platinum celebration made by Windsor & Eton Brewery in Windsor, England, on April 28, 2022. Daniel Leal/AFP via Getty Images

‘No Option’

The British Beer and Pub Association warned that the average energy bill for a pub would rise by £18,400 a year from this month after the Energy Bill Relief Scheme ends.

In a statement, Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, said that energy bills are “decimating our sector with extortionate costs wiping out profits and closing pubs at a faster rate than the pandemic.”

“Pubs that were profitable and thriving before the energy crisis are being left with no option but to shut up shop,” she added.

“We have been raising the alarm for months that energy costs are posing an existential threat to pubs across the country and these figures are evidence of that,” said McClarkin.

Alex Probyn, president of property tax at Altus Group, said: “Pubs have seen their values for the business rates tax fall 17 percent overall and, with measures taken at last year’s Autumn Statement, that will mean a tax saving of £5,500 for the average pub.

“But that simply won’t compensate for the energy support being lost, making plots even more attractive for alternative investment,” he added.

‘Everyone Knew’

Some English pubs date as far back as the 8th century, having served beer through Viking raids, the Black Death, and World War Two.

But many were forced to close during national lockdowns in 2020 and 2021.

Last September, Martin Robinson, co-owner of Ye Olde Fighting Cocks pub in St. Albans, told The Epoch Times that his gas and electric bills had increased from £1,800 a month to £5,500.

Reputed to be the oldest pub in England, Ye Olde Fighting Cocks claims to have been in business since 793 AD, though the main structure of the building was built in the 11th century and originally used as a pigeon house.

In response to Tuesday’s news, Robinson told The Epoch Times that he has had a “mad” year.

“Everyone knew in the winter that there would be loads of places closing at this time of the year because those energy bills were coming,” he said.

Robinson said that his energy bills had increased even more and the largest was £6,200, which he said is “just unreal.”

“We couldn’t buy firewood anywhere as everyone was turning to firewood. Unbelievably firewood was cheaper than gas to heat the place,” he added.

A man drinks beer in a Liverpool city centre pub ahead of the lockdown closure of bars, gyms, and clubs, in Liverpool, England, on Oct. 13, 2020. Christopher Furlong/Getty Images

Robinson noted that there was concern about stricter laws on firewood. Rules on what fuel people can burn in small wood stoves at home means it is now illegal to burn coal or wet wood in England. People are now required to buy alternative fuels such as dry wood and manufactured solid fuels.

The restrictions apply primarily to the domestic burning of these fuels, but some businesses, including pubs, are advised to follow the restrictions.

Robinson said he “didn’t know what to say” in regards to the Energy Bill Relief Scheme ending.

“We are very, very fortunate that we are not down and out like a lot of places are. We have affluent customers, we are right in the touristy part of the country, and people come from far and wide to visit us, that’s the only reason we are still here,” he added.

“If we were another high street pub, I'd already be out of business by now,” he added.

PA Media contributed to this report.