One in 20 pubs in Northern Ireland expects to be closed

One in 20 pubs in Northern Ireland expects to be closed by the end of this year thanks to the economic downturn and the availability of cheap alcohol.According to a new survey of over 200 NI publicans from the Northern Irish Federation of the Retail Licensed Trade, 34,000 on-trade jobs could be lost as a result.

“The majority of pubs in NI are owned and operated by private individuals - they cannot sell alcohol below cost price,” pointed out the Federation’s Chief Executive Colin Neill who stated that the pub industry there could not compete against major multiples selling at below-cost.

The Federation survey found that 35 per cent of members had already laid-off staff in the past 12 months and 24 per cent expected further redundancies in 2009.

Just under three-quarters of respondents had reduced the hours worked by their staff over the last year while three-fifths of them expected to have to reduce them again this year.

“The statistics being announced today show quite clearly that Northern Ireland's pub industry is in crisis,” stated Colin Neill, “98 per cent said that the economic situation is impacting their business and 45 per cent believe the next 12 months are going to be bad for business.

Already 14 per cent of the publicans surveyed have reduced their opening hours to help make ends meet with an additional 23 per cent expecting to have to do the same this year.”