No smoke without ire (From Bradford Telegraph and Argus)

No smoke without ire

12:42pm Thursday 24th April 2008

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When the smoking ban came into force there were dire warnings of what it would do to the income of pubs and clubs and other places where people gather socially.
But go on out on a Friday or Saturday night and the boozers and streets seem just as busy with revellers as they always were and the good thing is that there aren't huge groups of people having a cigarette outside, just twos and threes.
That's a positive result of the smoking ban and it will be worth all the fuss if it persuades some to give up on the weed. After all, the law was intended to improve the health of the British population and save lives. It's just a shame that licensees ignored that when they set up smoking shelters outside their premises giving smokers a chance to continue their habit instead of helping wean them off it.
A drop-off in trade has probably happened in a majority of licensed premises but the loss of income from smokers must be dwarfed by the effects of the increasing levels of duty on alcohol which this Government has introduced and puts the UK at the top of the European tax league.
What is causing the vast majority of pub closures I bet is this widening gulf between the price of drinks in pubs and what supermarkets charge, often using alcohol as a loss leader and encouraging people to stock up on cans and bottles to drink at home.
Not only does this mean that the sales of junk beers, lagers and spirits are encouraged but that people can binge to their heart's delight and liver's demise at home.
Most pubs are part of voluntary schemes limiting alcohol promotions but supermarkets don't seem to be and landlords must be very tempted to join the fray when they see that their major competition is getting away with them.
The greed of companies that own the pubs but see better returns on closing their properties and converting them to restaurants, housing or offices is another threat hanging over many of our inns.
But instead of the Government recognising that drinking in the safe, controlled environments of pubs, which are often at the heart of communities, is a way to combat binge drinking, they seem to be doing nothing to promote them and their often locally-produced craft beers and food.
They are not reining in the supermarkets and their cut-price promotions that make alcohol cheaper than bottled water but putting more pressure on landlords at a time of rising costs and declining custom.

Green or Obscene - the mileage count

Miles by car: -367
Miles being driven: -78
Miles by train: +349
Miles on foot: +52
Miles by bike: +0
Miles by bus: +0
Miles by ferry: +10
Total: -34 (running total: -2650)