Smoking ban: pub sales fall but punters happy

New research shows that while pub profits have fallen since the introduction of the smoking ban, consumers are largely pleased with their smoke-free surroundings.

Research by The Morning Advertiser, the publicans' newspaper, found that 77% of licensees think trade has suffered as a result of the smoking ban. Some three out of five said they had had to reduce staff hours or even let staff go to compensate for lower revenues.

And when the paper questioned members of the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers, half said they had seen profits fall by more than 6% since the ban.

PricewaterhouseCoopers (PWC) has also upped its prediction of the number of pubs likely to close by 2012, from 5,000 to 6,000. The accountancy firm recorded that 1,200 pubs closed last year, nearly double the 700 that closed in 2006.

Quoted by The Publican, PWC's Martin Jervis said that pub owners should "recognise loss-making trends early and deal with them in the appropriate way, for example through sale or closure".

However, consumer opinion on the smoking ban appears to be positive. Some78% of those members of the public surveyed by The Morning Advertiser saying they were pleased that the smoking ban had been introduced.

The ban was also favoured by many smokers, with 42% saying that they were glad pubs are now smoke-free.

Image: Matt Morton/PA Wire