Tens of thousands of pubs face closure as beleaguered landlords ‘give up’ on the trade, the Campaign for Real Ale has warned.

National Chairman Nik Antona estimates that the UK could lose more than 20 per cent of the licensed premises unless Rishi Sunak provides ‘comprehensive’ relief in the impending Budget.

Mr Antona said many publicans were ‘losing heart’ after 12 months of severely impacted trade and were either closing or effectively being forced out by property or pub management companies.

He cautioned that the loss of tens of thousands of licensed premises would have a ‘massive’ impact on mental health as well as delivering a huge blow to jobs and livelihoods.

Mr Antona told Metro.co.uk the 20 per cent figure – out of a total of around 55,000 pubs – could rise higher unless the Government supports traders facing multiple pressures during lockdown.

Mr Antona said: ‘We are seeing licensees announcing they are leaving, quite a few of those are in pub company premises.

‘Some pub companies are taking advantage of not renewing leases where licensees have reached the end of their contracts.

‘We are seeing across the country that the licensees want to stay on but the pub companies have other ideas for the business.

‘This includes taking the pub back in-house under their own direct management and providing their own employees.

‘Worryingly, we are also seeing people running independent pubs looking to convert their premises to residential and other uses because of the impact of Covid and the lockdowns.

‘Some of these pubs were barely viable before the pandemic and the landlords are deciding to walk away and in some cases to retire.

‘We are also seeing where tenants lease premises from commercial organisations they are struggling because they have had no rent reductions or rebates over the past twelve months and little or no turnover.

‘They have had Government grants but they have been doing limited food or takeaway alcohol and now they can’t afford the rent, so they are giving up and walking away from the industry.

‘They are closing the pub and in many cases the landlords are seeing it as an opportunity to re-purpose the building.’

Licensed premises would open in April under the Government’s tentative roadmap out of lockdown, due to be announced next week, although this could initially be limited to outdoor areas.

Mr Antona acknowledges pubs have received financial relief from the Government during Covid but wants Rishi Sunak to provide comprehensive support in the Budget on March 3.

CAMRA turns 50 this year with no clear end to the worst crisis the trade has weathered in the organisation’s history.

Mr Antona said: ‘We recognise there is a pandemic but flaky evidence has been used to scapegoat the pub and hospitality industry to be one of the main causes of the spread of Covid.

‘We need all pubs, regardless of their rateable value, to receive Government support until it’s deemed right to reopen.

‘Otherwise a lot of publicans will have given up because they can’t pay the bills, they’re not earning anything or they have lost heart.

‘We need to see Rishi Sunak put something in place retrospectively.

‘These pubs have struggled for the last 12 months, they need proper support and a financial package to help them clear the bills and debts they have incurred through no fault of their own and prepare the industry for reopening, whenever that will be. Otherwise we could see more than the estimated twenty per cent fial to reopen.’

Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin told Metro.co.uk yesterday that opening beer gardens only would be a disaster that would leave jobs hanging in the balance. However, CAMRA supports the outdoors plan if it is the only means to get the taps flowing once more.

Mr Antona said: ‘The consumer will embrace that situation and be happy to go the pub in whatever format and if that means sitting outside for a month or so it would be worthwhile, although a lot of pubs don’t have that luxury.

‘We will have to ask the Government to relax the rules again so they can make use of outdoor spaces.

‘Ultimately though pubs have spent a fortune, millions, on Covid-secure measures such as spacing, screens, hand-washing, one-way systems, signage and restricting people to no more than six at a table.

‘It’s all ready to go again.’

Underscoring the importance of pubs to community life, Mr Antona pointed to the social benefits behind alcohol consumption.

‘Pubs don’t just serve alcohol, many of them have been meeting places for families, friends and neighbours for some time,’ he said.

‘They are hubs for charitable activity and for town, community and sporting life. More importantly, they are places for people to meet, socialise and overcome loneliness.

‘If you take that away people will struggle and we may see a massive increase in mental health issues as people’s wellbeing is damaged.’

Pubs have been provided with grants of several thousand pounds a time to help survive the lockdowns and can use the Job Retention Scheme.

In January, the Government announced that one-off payments of £9,000, based on a venue’s rateable value, would be provided.

Metro.co.uk has approached HM Treasury for comment.

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