"It's heartbreaking": Cheshire pub owner as average pint to pass £5

A hospitality boss in Cheshire says it's "heartbreaking" to see the rate of price rises in British pubs, as the average pint is due to exceed £5 next month.

It comes after a number of cost increases linked to last October's budget, which will come into force in April.

Tony Callaghan, owner of bars and pubs across the north west, said: "I've worked in this industry all my life and it's heartbreaking to see what's happening.

"People are drinking more and more at home so it's having a massive impact on our industry."

Firms will face increases to the national minimum wage, a rise in national insurance rates and a decrease in the threshold at which firms start paying out national insurance.

Mr Callaghan says customers have very difficult decisions to make: "You only need to go to the supermarket and see the price of a loaf of bread 12 months ago and a pint of milk.

"I think customers do understand why prices are rising, but will they still support the Great British pub and restaurants going forward?"

The British Beer and Pub Association said the average cost of a pint in the UK is expected to rise by around 21p.

The research, commissioned alongside Frontier Economics, showed that pub firms are expecting to raise the average price of a pint from £4.80 to £5.01.

"The Great British pub is a great institution, you go throughout the world to China, Hong Kong, Dubai, Spain; what have you got? The Great British pub", Mr Callaghan added.

"I really do hope that the government intervene because once this is all implemented in April, it's going to be very tough for our industry."

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