UK defends its rules for beer sales

Date: 10/10/1996

By Chris Johnstone

THE UK and the European Commission are likely to widen rather than sink their differences at a meeting in Brussels this week over what beer can be sold in British pubs.

Despite earlier signals from the UK that it might be willing to bow to Commission demands,

its Department of Trade and Industry will go into tomorrow's (11 October) meeting armed with a comprehensive defence of its rules on what range of beers should be offered in pubs.

The British rules, which call for pubs owned by major brewers to sell cask-conditioned beer, are in theory aimed at ensuring pubs sell a variety of beer and not just those produced by the brewer and pub owner.

But the Commission says that while the rules are fine in principle, in practice they block imports of special, artisanal beers from the rest of Europe. It argues that cask-conditioned beers are a largely British phenomenon and wants modest changes to the measure to give small European brewers a chance to sell their brews in the UK.

The Commission's move follows a complaint from an importer who wanted to supply British pubs with Bavarian beer. Pubs owned by big brewers refused to take the Bavarian brew, even when the importer cited the guest beer provision.

UK trade officials have drawn up a list of around 40 European breweries which produce cask-conditioned beer and thus have privileged access to British pubs. It insists the guest beer rules do not discriminate against foreign beers and are compatible with the Treaty of Rome.

But the British-based Federation of Small Businesses, which includes pub landlords amongst its members, says the guest beer provision has not worked. Big UK brewers have moved in to supply cask-conditioned beer, Tetleys is the biggest seller and small brewers have not won new market openings, says federation spokesman Paul Horan.