TODAY the Scottish Parliament will discuss the findings of a report that suggests that Scotland’s pubs are closing at a faster rate than anywhere in the UK.
The report, put together by a cross-party group, states that investment is being diverted away from the beer and pub industry.
The Scottish Conservatives are placing new pressures on the government to develop a new hospitality strategy, to promote the social and economic wellbeing of the sector.
The party has launched a campaign to ‘Save Scotland’s Pubs’, which involves introducing 100% business rates relief for pubs and restaurants.
Earlier this year, the Cross-Party Group on Beer and Pubs released a report titled “What does ‘Brand Scotland’ mean for the Scottish Beer and Pub sector?”.
Brand Scotland is a marketing collaboration between the seven Scottish organisations including the Scottish Government, VisitScotland and Creative Scotland.
They aim to cement Scotland as a leading country to live, work, or visit, and do this by working together to improve Scotland’s reputation on a global scale.
The Cross-Party Group on Beer and Pubs states that “the Scottish beer and pub sector contributes significantly to Brand Scotland” and witnesses “the dynamic and vibrant contribution that the sector makes to communities and the economy across Scotland”.
In South Scotland alone, there are “over 100 breweries and 4,340 pubs employing 65,000 people and contributing £1.8bn in wider economic benefits”.
The findings have been submitted by Craig Hoy, MSP for the Scottish Conservative party, and is also supported by 16 Conservative MSPs, including Dr Sandesh Gulhane.
Gulhane took to social media yesterday to spread the word about the ‘Save Scotland’s Pubs’ campaign, saying: “Scotland’s pubs are the lifeblood of local communities – but are closing at a higher rate than anywhere else in Britain.
“And your local could be next.
“Join our campaign to fight for rates relief for our pubs and restaurants”.
Paul Sweeney, MSP for Glasgow Region (Scottish Labour and Co-operative Party) is also in support today and is the only non-Conservative member of Parliament who backs the motion.
This comes after Dr Peter Rice, chairman of Scottish Health Action On Alcohol Problems (Shaap) has called for funding to be restored to reduce alcohol-related harm in the upcoming Budget.
It also follows a report from the Scottish Tourism Alliance, released last week, that found that Scottish tourism and hospitality businesses are on a “financial knife edge”.
In a comment to Deadline News, Paul Sweeney MSP said: “As Deputy Convenor of the Cross-Party group on Beer and Pubs, I regularly meet with representatives of the hospitality sector and pub owners who tell me that it is becoming increasingly difficult to run a pub in Scotland.
“You can see pubs closing at an alarming rate on the high street and this report highlights just how important breweries and pubs are to the Scottish economy. Not only that, but pubs are also crucial for preventing social isolation.
“While the UK Government has provided business rate relief in England for pubs, the Scottish Government made the decision not to pass that on to pubs in Scotland.
“It is my hope that this report will draw attention to the difficulties pubs and breweries across Scotland are facing and encourage the SNP Scottish Government to jump into action and take the difficulties faced by the hospitality sector seriously.”
Craig Hoy MSP has also been contacted for comment.
