Comment on Pubs could stay open until early hours in move to boost UK growth
ThePyroPython@lemmy.world 2 days ago
Honestly, I support this.
Pubs are constantly getting squeezed out by competition from supermarkets and whilst I’m not a big drinker or even a regular at a pub, it’s a part of British culture that should be preserved.
HOWEVER, if we’re talking about legal reforms to preserve pub culture, there’s many other issues that need addressing.
Examples include: Brewery-owned pubs being one of the worst types of franchise business for squeezing “owners” out of every last penny and having a ridiculous amount of control on how the pub is run even if the Landlord/lady has other ideas about how it should be run.
The power of brewerys over the pubs they control needs to be weakened.
It’s fairly easy to convert a pub into a single residencey and little to no planning permission is required. It’s impossible to return a former pub back to being a pub even if the community consents. Given that pub is short for “Public House” when more of these were vital parts of the community, said community should have first right-to-buy dibs to keep it going for the community.
Freehouses should have lower rates and brewerys should not be allowed to pressure freehouses into dropping that status in exchange for not paying exorbitant prices for produce.
Weatherspoons and StoneGate need to be broken up and the Franchise model needs replacing with a Cooperative model.
And as a last example, repealing the ban on gambling games and replacing it with more sensible regulation. E.g. games cannot allow the house to take a cut of winnings, must be organised by a regular patron, limited to a single night of the week, with a simple one page from registering with the gambling association so the appropriate authorities are aware, and a limit on the monetary value per round.
That last one is two fold:
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Small friendly bets on card games in pubs is less likely to drain gambling-prone people’s income than a betting shop and comes with an inbuilt support network.
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Smaller “don’t-take-the-piss” events and clubs with a light touch of regulation is much better for keeping the peace and not causing social problems than letting large corporate betting shops swallow the high street whole along with desperate and addicted people’s money to a tax haven.
rah@hilariouschaos.com 1 day ago
Why?
JustARaccoon@lemmy.world 1 day ago
It’s the cornerstone of interacting with your local community in the UK. You don’t even have to drink, it’s a cozy, generally quiet place to socialise.
rah@hilariouschaos.com 1 day ago
No it isn’t. My interactions with my local community never take place in a pub.
JustARaccoon@lemmy.world 1 day ago
I do most of my social hangouts at pubs, be it to have a nice indoors place to chat (esp when it gets late) or to play Magic. Same with most of my friends.
Even if I go outside of my friend group, pubs are usually full, of young people too, and there’s a reason their name is a shortened version of “public house”. Sure you could argue younger generations are going to the pub less and less, but to say that historically it has not been the social centre of UK towns is false.
Also for your last bit, if at least some at the group buys something it should be fine, obv don’t go to a pub and take up space without giving them any money. It doesn’t even have to be alcoholic drinks either.