Memorandum submitted by JAT Leisure
In response to the article in the Coin Slot
dated 17 July 2008. I have been in the gaming industry since 1996
and a certificated operator of gaming equipment since 1974 and
have experienced everything that the tied public house trade can
throw at an independent operator. I have been forced out of over
250 public houses over the 34 years and I can assure you that
not one of our customers were better off under either the brewery's
or later the parasite pub co's control.
When in 1985 the EEC directive banning Brewery's
from holding their tenants to ransom by controlling not only suppliers
of products but the amount they would pay that supplier we the
independent operator thought thank God for that it had been long
overdue, however most breweries turned a blind eye to the ruling
and they did not take any notice of the directive until 1990 when
leases due to European Courts ruling against them, that leases
began to be given out free of ties.
We the independents had a short but very productive
period up until Mrs Thatcher allowed (Dick Turpin of the brewing
trade) Lord Young to come up with the brilliant idea that no brewery
should be allowed to own more than 2,000 public houses (Youngers
brewery had just 2,000 houses). He had already spotted the loophole
in the wording of the EEC directive that only mentioned a brewery
not an estate agent or other body hence the birth of the parasites
companies such as Punch Taverns whose shareholders were the same
as the breweries and they were back in the robbing business ripping
the heart out of the retail public house trade.
The tied tenant is now in a far worse position
than they were under the old brewery tied system at least the
breweries wanted the houses to continue to sell their products.
The pubco's tenants are forced to have everything from a nominated
supplier with the parasite pub co getting a cut or back hander
from the supplier called a royalty in the trade, this is in addition
to taking over half of all the takings from any type of amusement
machine with the tenant paying the rents and licenses out of their
share.
29 September 2008
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