Greene King boss Rooney Anand today came out strongly in favour of minimum pricing for alcohol, claiming cheap supermarket booze is killing the pub trade.
The chief executive of the brewer and pub operator - around since 1799 - said: “I would like to see the government stick to its guns on this. We’ve been in business 213 years and would like to be in business for another 213. I don’t like the way alcohol is being demonised by binge drinkers. That happens because it is being sold at pocket money prices.”
He was talking as the maker of Old Speckled Hen unveiled a 7% rise in sales for the half year to £566 million. Profits are also up 7% to £82.7 million, allowing for a 6.7% rise in the interim dividend to 7.15p.
Anand reckons for many a trip to the pub has become part of how they deal with tough times.
“The economic backdrop doesn’t get any better,” he said. “The customer response to that is controlled coping. A visit to the pub is an important everyday treat. Spend on big ticket items is down, but people still want to go to the pub after work.”
He called on the Chancellor to boost struggling businesses in tomorrow’s Autumn statement.
“I’d like him to deliver a budget that backs British business,” he said. “There has been an assumption that the private sector will pick up the slack from the public sector. There need to be hard measures to incentivise business men and women.”
Like the rest of the trade he's in favour of ditching the beer duty escalator, which increases the price of a pint by 2% above inflation each year.
