The cost of living crisis is on everyone’s minds as the cost of electricity and gas is set to shoot up over autumn and winter, and one landlord of over 30 years has said they’d have to charge £16 a pint to pay for bills of almost £50,000 a year.
The Telegraph & Argus reported, that Stephen Hey, landlord of The Wickham Arms Hotel in Cleakheaton said his bills are going to rise from £10,000 to almost £50,000 a year.
All businesses are struggling across the UK with rising costs, read more below…
Speaking to the Telegraph and Argus he said: “I have been a publican for 48 years and have never seen anything like this.”
“We cannot plan for anything. 12 of my staff could be without a job because of my electric bills going up.”
“I go to sleep every night afraid and I wake up every morning afraid. This crisis is far more urgent than the government is aware of.
Discussing the financial problems they face Hey predicted the industry’s future saying: ” “£1,000 a month is affordable but £1,000 a week is not.
“You can’t push that rise onto the customers, if I was to do that I would be charging £16 a pint. By next year, the costs may come down but it will be too late.
“Local pubs can simply not compete with the Wetherspoons and Lloyds. It will soon be a monopoly.”
This local landlord’s issue is multiplied across the nation. Pension providers, Penfold, published a study that predicted the cost of beer could be as much as £13.98 by 2025 at the current rate of inflation.
Energy price caps don’t apply to businesses, so any factors such as a 300 per cent increase to the bill when renewing tariffs are affecting things, according to The Sun.
