Wednesday 28th July 2023

Our latest research reveals that some parts of Britain have seen as many as 69 local pubs close their doors in the past two years, a situation that could be made even worse when the freeze on alcohol tax ends on 1st August. 

The traditional British boozer is quickly becoming extinct and with a freeze on alcohol tax due to end this August, the number of pubs found across Britain could be set to decline even further over the coming years.  

To understand how the recent years of economic turmoil in Britain has impacted the pub industry, we have analysed the changing number of outlets up and down the country between 2020 and 2022. 

Despite the Government handing pubs a lifeline in the form of an alcohol tax freeze in the August 2020 budget, the number of pubs across Britain has remained largely static over the last two years, increasing by just 164 nationwide. 

This tax freeze hasn’t been enough to halt the worrying decline in pub numbers across many areas and in London, the number of pubs has fallen by -33, from 4,366 in 2020 to 4,333 in 2022. When analysing the nation at local authority level, the severity of this decline becomes all the more apparent. 

In fact, as many as 161 local authorities across the nation now have fewer pubs when compared to 2020.

Here’s where the number of pubs is falling across your region.