Average price for a pub pint in the south of England tops £3

The cost of a pint of beer is now higher in the Surrey commuter belt than in London pubs.

Drinkers in parts of the South now have to pay £3.01 for a pub pint compared to £2.90 in London’s pubs and bars.

Fiona Stapley, joint-editor of the Good Pub Guide 2010, said: “There is more disposable income in the South East and pub companies feel they can get away with it.”

The UK-wide average pub price for a pint of beer stands at £2.68 – up 10p on last year - while the cheapest beer is in the West Midlands, Nottingham or Staffordshire where the average is £2.40 a pint.

The figures, revealed in the latest Good Pub Guide 2010, are attributed to the rise in pub closures and the fall in consumption of beer outside the home.

Yearly pub beer sales have almost halved over the past 30 years, running at 5.4 billion pints a year compared to 10.67 billion in 1979.

In July, the British Beer and Pub Association released a report revealing that pubs serving food were in a stronger position to whether the recession than wet-led pubs.

The report stated that pubs mainly selling drink were shutting at a rate of 51 a week while those focusing on food were closing at a rate of one a week.

“The numbers show that pubs paying more attention to a good food offering can give their business some protection from the intense and growing regulatory and tax pressure on alcohol sales,” said BBPA communications manager Neil Williams.


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By Emma White

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