Pub Companies

Part of Opposition Day — [13th Allotted Day] – in the House of Commons at 3:13 pm on 9 January 2013.

Alert me about debates like this

Photo of Ian Lucas Ian Lucas Shadow Minister (Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs) 3:13, 9 January 2013

I am certain that that shameless piece of publicity for the good citizens of Gateshead will be fully reported by the Evening Chronicle. It is a great pleasure to be sitting beside my hon. Friend once again.

We will now be regulating in this area, but Governments of all political parties have tried all along to avoid regulation. I used to have ministerial responsibility for regulatory reform, and some Members on the Government Benches may be surprised to know that even among Labour Ministers there is great resistance to introducing regulation. In that post, I always held to the principle that regulation should be a last resort, and that wherever possible we should use non-statutory codes instead.

Where I beg to differ with the hon. Member for Burton is that I believe this is the time for us to regulate. The industry has had an enormous amount of time, and has been given every opportunity, to avoid regulation. It has failed to respond to the numerous opportunities that have been given. That is why the last Labour Government did not take the steps to regulate that this Government have suggested we should have taken. In passing, it is ironic that virtually the whole House of Commons is united with the honourable exception of the hon. Gentleman in favour of introducing regulation and legislation.

We agree that regulation needs to be introduced because the voluntary approach has failed. That is certainly what I have been hearing for a long time from licensees and tenants in Wrexham. Indeed, it was said at a meeting I held in Wrexham last summer with my good friend, my hon. Friend Mr Bailey, Chair of the Business, Innovation and Skills Committee. We met local licensees and were told about the failure of the voluntary code. We were gravely disappointed when the consensus reached in the House was not followed through.

The Secretary of State made a measured and sensible contribution today, which I welcome. The key issue is inequality of bargaining power between the pub companies and the licensees, and it is reasonable for Government to intervene. It is important that we encourage licensees and everyone else involved in the brewing industry to contribute to the consultation. Pubs are an important part of our local communities. There is strong demand for community meeting places, as the huge increase in the number of coffee shops in Britain over the past 10 or 15 years demonstrates. Pubs can meet that demand, too, if we get this framework right. We have all done a lot of work to get to the point we have now reached, but we must not lose hold of the ball; we must carry it over the try line and achieve a truly positive outcome.

Wrexham Lager is a microbrewery that produces excellent local ale. That ale is served at the Bridge End inn in Ruabon in a neighbouring constituency, and the pub has been CAMRA pub of the year. Local micro-economies can grow as a result of brewers setting up locally and working with local pubs to produce local produce for local people to consume with gay abandon. That is the model we want to see.

What is now happening is a great triumph for the House of Commons, and I pay tribute to everyone involved. This is a good day, and we should celebrate what has been achieved, but we must also make sure that we continue to take these matters forward.