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Finance Bill

There are a number of reasons why pubs are suffering. I touched on changing lifestyles, and I suppose that one could incorporate the drink-drive laws in that. Certainly, there have been big changes in what is regarded as socially acceptable, although the relevant laws have not changed for a while. The hon. Gentleman did not mention the smoking ban, the effect of which I acknowledge has been chequered: although it may have had a positive effect in some establishments, in most it was probably a negative one. However, the hon. Member for Luton, North (Kelvin Hopkins) makes a very fair point about alcohol off-sales. Anyone who goes shopping will know just how cheap alcohol is in supermarkets compared with pubs. I observe that customers seem keen to buy alcohol sold cheaply in supermarkets. The public do not greet it with great hostility, but the differential involved makes it that much harder for pubs and other licensed establishments to be successful. The differential also makes it harder for traditional brewers to be successful, because they are rarely able to offer to the supermarkets the heavily discounted alcohol that the large international brewers can offer. Therefore, they are at a price disadvantage even within the supermarket, because the economies of scale are not sufficiently big for them to be able to manufacture to the level that means that supermarkets will offer their products at a great discount.