Pub Landlord Considers £7.50 Price for Pint of Guinness
A pub landlord is consulting customers about the possibility of increasing the price of a pint of Guinness to £7.50.
The Advocate Arms in Market Rasen, Lincolnshire, currently charges £6 for a pint but is contemplating a price hike due to a "significant rise" in costs from the Guinness brand.
Landlord Matthew Horsfield stated:
"We wanted to see what customers thought and what they would like to see, and weigh up our options."
Diageo, the distributor of Guinness, indicated it has kept price increases minimal, reflecting rising supply chain costs, and emphasized that retail pricing is "entirely at the discretion of the retailer/wholesaler."
Horsfield, aged 42, added:
"Guinness seems to be one of the major brands that just keeps increasing prices yearly.
It starts from the top, so your suppliers get those increases and then it gets fed all the way to us.
It's really frustrating. You're constantly trying to weigh it up and balance it out. It's a lot of money for a pint at any pub nowadays."
Diageo stated that Guinness is priced very competitively in the market, with the average UK pint costing £5.21.
The company noted that following the planned increase in April, the impact per draught pint for customers would be approximately £0.04.
Diageo further explained:
"Like all businesses, Diageo must carefully manage the rising cost of doing business through regular pricing review of our products.
This increase allows Diageo to continue investing in our brands to bring high-quality stout and spirits to market, and to support investment in initiatives to drive mutual growth for our customers across the hospitality sector."
Historical Price Trends and Government Support
Data from The Office for National Statistics reveals that in 1987, the average price of a pint of draught lager was under £1, rising to £2 by 2000, and reaching £4.83 by 2025.
In January, the government announced a 15% discount on business rates for pubs and music venues in England starting in April, following backlash against the November Budget.
Industry Perspectives on Rising Prices
Ash Corbett-Collins, chairman of the Campaign for Real Ale, highlighted the challenges pubs face:
"Pubs were facing a gigantic fight every day to keep their doors open.
The ever-increasing price of a pint means supporting your local is becoming unaffordable for many pubgoers, but for publicans the only choice is to raise prices or close their doors for good."
He called for urgent government action, stating:
"They [landlords] must be given support with unrelenting energy bills, increases to National Insurance contributions must be reversed; VAT on food and drink, as well as duty charged on pints in pubs, must be lowered.
Pubs desperately need permanently lower business rate bills if they are to thrive, not just survive."
Heather Dempsey, director of Shadowbridge Brewery in Scunthorpe, has imposed a £5 limit on drink prices, resulting in some brands not being stocked.
She explained:
"We can't justify it.
At the prices we would have to buy them we'd have to sell them at maybe £7 a pint - possibly more.
This would mean we would sell less of it and, therefore, we would waste more because it's not selling. It's a bit of a vicious cycle, really."
Public Opinion on Pint Prices
The BBC surveyed residents in Barton, North Lincolnshire, an area with numerous pubs, regarding their views on pint prices and whether £7.50 is excessive.
Josh Kelly, 26, remarked:
"You see a lot of IPAs that are priced at £6.50 to £7.
I wouldn't want to pay more than £5.50, maybe £6 depending on what you're drinking."
Carol Jacklin expressed shock:
"I am totally shocked, no wonder pubs are closing."
Reverend Kathy Colwell commented:
"That's an extortionate amount for a drink, but then everything has gone up, hasn't it?"
James Toomey, 81, stated that paying £4.50 or more for a pint would be too expensive.
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