Though the government is expected to do a U-turn on business rates for pubs, hospitality is still fearsomely in decline: more than 2,000 businesses are expected to close over 2026. Pubs are one of the UK’s great institutions: the social leveller, the refuge in restless times, the dance floor in times of celebration.
In 2025, it was reported one pub across the country closed every day, and while in London things weren’t quite so bad, there’s no denying things were still pretty bleak.
