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A lot of the problems started under Blair. Licensing for music was a horrible policy move. The smoking ban necessary, but brutal for pubs; ditto a crackdown on

A lot of the problems started under Blair. Licensing for music was a horrible policy move. The smoking ban necessary, but brutal for pubs; ditto a crackdown on underage drinking. In my forties, and I feel that my generation was the last to enjoy a particular pub experience which is now a rapidly receding memory.

PaulRobinson 2y ago
The smoking ban caused a small bump - and we suddenly realised all the pubs had stinking toilets that the smoke had masked - but I think it actually resulted in both better environments for a wider audience, and a massive benefit to public health, particularly in working class communities. Long term, I think it led to a better pub environment for more people. There have been consistent and regular crackdowns on underage drinking for well over a century - I don't recall a particularly large crackdown in recent years, but the licensing has changed: the Police now have more leverage over whether a publican and their property should keep trading than they did before, and that's meant a lot of idiot landlords who didn't give a damn about the social problems their idiocy caused have been forced out of the industry. Those who run a tighter ship stay in business. By far the biggest shift seems to me, generational attitudes to drinking. When I was in my early 20s, I was in the pub pretty much every night (and many lunchtimes), and I wasn't alone, and was drinking with colleagues and friends who were the same age all the way up to retirement age and beyond. The people I work with today in their early 20s might go out twice a month, and even then might only have 2-3 drinks all night. They're more likely to go to the gym in the evening, or to head home and watch Netflix or read their Kindle than to go to the pub. It's interesting that low alcohol drinks are the biggest growth sector, and I've seen 0% beer on draught a little more in recent months. It might seriously help the sector if we just accept getting sloshed every night isn't good for people, people are realising it, and that you need to cater for that.
- gwervc 2y ago
  I don't know about the UK but in my country it's not uncommon to have pints priced at 8€, which is 0.5% of the minimal salary. It is a really pricy way to spend time.
  - dukeyukey 2y ago
    €8 (£6.80) is more than most pints even in London, and quite a lot more than the £4.50 I usually pay cos I've been here a while, and know the cheaper places. But even then, £4.50 adds up fast.
- cromka 2y ago
  Nonalcoholic beers have gotten so popular and so good in Poland that pretty every pub has at least some on tap and many more bottled. Unfortunately they aren’t any cheaper than regular ones at all, and with beer now regularly priced at 16-22 PLN (roughly 4-5 euro), going out has gotten ridiculously expensive. From my observations, going out is not as common as it used to. I don’t know what the problem is, but I have a feeling that it’s slightly more convoluted and part of a broader generational changes, as you noticed yourself.

PaulRobinson 2y ago

The smoking ban caused a small bump - and we suddenly realised all the pubs had stinking toilets that the smoke had masked - but I think it actually resulted in both better environments for a wider audience, and a massive benefit to public health, particularly in working class communities. Long term, I think it led to a better pub environment for more people. There have been consistent and regular crackdowns on underage drinking for well over a century - I don't recall a particularly large crackdown in recent years, but the licensing has changed: the Police now have more leverage over whether a publican and their property should keep trading than they did before, and that's meant a lot of idiot landlords who didn't give a damn about the social problems their idiocy caused have been forced out of the industry. Those who run a tighter ship stay in business. By far the biggest shift seems to me, generational attitudes to drinking. When I was in my early 20s, I was in the pub pretty much every night (and many lunchtimes), and I wasn't alone, and was drinking with colleagues and friends who were the same age all the way up to retirement age and beyond. The people I work with today in their early 20s might go out twice a month, and even then might only have 2-3 drinks all night. They're more likely to go to the gym in the evening, or to head home and watch Netflix or read their Kindle than to go to the pub. It's interesting that low alcohol drinks are the biggest growth sector, and I've seen 0% beer on draught a little more in recent months. It might seriously help the sector if we just accept getting sloshed every night isn't good for people, people are realising it, and that you need to cater for that.

gwervc 2y ago
I don't know about the UK but in my country it's not uncommon to have pints priced at 8€, which is 0.5% of the minimal salary. It is a really pricy way to spend time.
- dukeyukey 2y ago
  €8 (£6.80) is more than most pints even in London, and quite a lot more than the £4.50 I usually pay cos I've been here a while, and know the cheaper places. But even then, £4.50 adds up fast.
cromka 2y ago
Nonalcoholic beers have gotten so popular and so good in Poland that pretty every pub has at least some on tap and many more bottled. Unfortunately they aren’t any cheaper than regular ones at all, and with beer now regularly priced at 16-22 PLN (roughly 4-5 euro), going out has gotten ridiculously expensive. From my observations, going out is not as common as it used to. I don’t know what the problem is, but I have a feeling that it’s slightly more convoluted and part of a broader generational changes, as you noticed yourself.