The great British pub, home to most of the country’s Category C machines, is under threat.
The numbers of operating pubs are falling annually through a combination of factors, but those that are left are being systematically targeted by the new Labour government, says the Conservative opposition.
A letter from Kevin Hollinrake, Shadow Secretary of State for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, to Electrocoin’s John Stergides, outlines an alleged five-step plan by Kier Starmer and Rachel Reeves, who, says Hollinrake, have "declared war on London’s pubs."
From April, every pub landlord will have to pay an extra £800 per worker thanks to Labour’s punitive hike on Employer National Insurance. Hollinrake also points out that in order to meet this cost, the average pub will have to sell an extra 1,300 pints.
He also points to Labour’s hike in business rates by 140 per cent, imposed in October, and for each average pub that would cut £5,500 from the bottom line. Third, Labour is also clamping down on what he calls "pub banter."
“Thinly-stretched publicans will have to police what their patrons are saying in case it offends staff, making pubs as sterile and boring as one of Kier Starmer’s academic law libraries.”
Fourth comes the "shrinkflation" of the British pint. The Metrology Bill will allow Labour to shrink the size of a pint, meaning that the pint under Labour will get smaller and more expensive, “like so many other products you see in the shops these days.”
Finally, says Hollinrake, Labour is clamping down on flexible hours for workers, which means that young people seeking a weekend job will not be able to find work and pubs will struggle to find the staff to deliver a service at busy periods.
Concludes Hollinrake: “Pubs are the beating heart of rural and urban communities across the country, so it’s vital that we fight Labour’s plan to bash the Great British boozer.”
Hollinrake, who is MP for Thirsk and Malton, has launched a petition for which he is seeking support from the gaming industry.
