David Sweeney, co-owner of Banktop Brewery, said he was bitterly disappointed with Alistair Darling’s decision and believes it has gone a long way to making the traditional public house a thing of the past.

He said: “I am outraged and need to express my bitter disappointment at this Government. It doesn’t listen to business.

“It is another nail in the coffin of this industry when such a large increase in the already unfair and punitive levels of tax on beer is imposed.”

Mr Sweeney believes profits will be much harder to make this year and more small pub landlords throw in the towel.

He said: “Mr Darling said he intends to increase duty on beer by two per cent above inflation for the next four years. That’s just throwing the soil on top of the coffin after the coffin lid has already been nailed shut.”

Banktop has been brewing beer at its Pavilion micro brewery, off Ashworth Road, Astley Bridge, since 2002. It has brewed real ale in Bolton for the past 13 years.

Co-owners John Feeney and David Sweeney produce 13 regular beers and two seasonal ales, sold across the UK, with traditional Lancashire names such as Flat Cap dark mild and Pavilion pale ale.

It employs five people, turning out almost 400 nine-gallon barrels of beer a week in addition to its bottling capacity.

Mr Sweeney and Mr Feeney lobbied Bolton North-east MP David Crausby in February with their fears of a possible tax increase. He passed on their concerns to Mr Darling.

Mr Sweeney said that real ale and the traditional public house were victims of the crackdown on binge drinking and blamed supermarkets for selling alcohol too cheaply.

He said: “Real ale isn’t a drink that revolves around binge drinking. Landlords have a duty of care to make sure people don’t drink to excess.

“As a buyer, I can assure anybody that supermarkets are selling beer to the general public cheaper than anybody in the trade can buy it.

“They are using it as a loss leader. Raising prices at the pump is forcing people out of the social environment of the public house.”

Mr Feeney said: “Bolton is a bigger place now with fewer pubs and it is purely and simply that putting the prices up is driving people to stay at home and drink cheaper beer from supermarkets.

“We know a landlord who goes and buys three bottles of wine for £10 in a supermarket to sell in his pub, because it’s cheaper than wholesale.”

Taken from: www.theboltonnews.co.uk
By Nick Yates