Scotland - New survey reveals decline in 'on-sales'

The Scottish Licensed Trade Association (SLTA) has published a report which appears to confirm the negative impact which the more restrictive drink-driving laws are having on the on-licensed trade.

A new Market Insight Report commissioned by the SLTA is said to show that more than 3,000 pubs saw a fall in sales over the summer, including one third of pubs in rural and tourist areas who saw sales fall by more than 10 per cent compared with summer 2014. The findings extend beyond alcohol sales with 38% of outlets in Scotland’s growing food sector surveyed reporting a decline year-on-year. Confidence in the sector is also low, with only 18% saying they expect to see any growth in the rest of 2015.

Nearly two-thirds (64 per cent) of respondents to the SLTA’s survey, which was completed by 600 pub owners in Scotland, said that legislation by the Scottish Government was the single biggest threat to their business. Some operators were also concerned about how they would afford to pay the new national living wage to workers over the age of 25 from next year. The SLTA has also called for a points-based systems of penalties for Scottish drink drivers, with reduced penalties for those whose alcohol level is between the new 50mg/100ml legal limit and the previous 80mg/100ml limit.

A separate recent report indicated that alcohol consumption in Scotland was on the increase with supermarkets benefitting from increased home consumption. See our article - 'Scotland - alcohol sales 'rise''.