Pubs and brewers across the UK could shut within months amid price increases of 300 per cent, industry bosses have warned. In an open letter to the government, bosses of six of the UK’s biggest pub and brewing companies are urging it to act in order to avoid “real and serious irreversible” damage to the sector.
Greene King, JW Lees, Carlsberg Marston’s, Admiral Taverns, Drake & Morgan and St Austell Brewery all sounded the alarm on Tuesday. Out of control gas prices following the invasion of Ukraine by Russia have contributed to rocketing energy bills for operators.
It comes after on Friday (August 26), regulator Ofgem confirmed that bills for an average UK household would surge by 80 per cent in October when the new price cap comes into force. However, businesses operate without a regulated price cap, with some pub owners warning that their bills have quadrupled or are struggling to even find suppliers willing to power their venues when contracts come up for renewal.
