Over 120 pubs have shut in Galway since 2005

AN Uber taxi service and a reduction in VAT rates on the price of alcohol could be of great benefit to the pub trade in rural Ireland, according to publicans in Dunmore and Abbeyknockmoy.

Pubs have been put up for sale in recent times in places such as Barnaderg, Kiltevna, Monivea and Castleblakeney.

A report released last week from the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI) detailed that a quarter of Irish pubs have closed since 2005, or 2,205, and concluded that 124 pubs (21 per cent) of pubs in County Galway have shut down across those 21 years.

Last year’s Budget reduced the VAT rate in the hospitality sector for food and alcohol from 13.5 per cent to 9 per cent, which boosted pubs that serve food. Pubs that solely serve alcohol, also known as ‘wet’ pubs, pay a VAT rate of 23 per cent on alcohol.

Gerard Delaney, who runs Mannion’s Bar in Abbeyknockmoy in partnership with Paddy Mannion, said that bringing down the excise duty on alcohol would benefit wet pubs. “We do our VAT returns every two months and it’s pretty high. We pay 23 per cent VAT rate and that’s nearly a quarter of every €1,000 that you take in. I think it would help also if they lowered the VAT rate for off-licence trading,” said Gerard.

“We’re not like Temple Bar in Dublin or Quay Street in Galway. Rural pubs have to operate on a far lower turnover and profit margins and prices. A pint of Guinness in Mannion’s is €5.50, where a pint of Guinness in Temple Bar will cost €10 or €11.

“On the BBC programme ‘Escape to the Country’, the major selling point is the local pub in the village.”

Davy Glynn has been the proprietor of Glynns Bar in Dunmore for 30 years and he believes that wet pubs need more assistance from the Government when it comes to matters such as VAT rates.

“It would help if they reduced the excise duty for wet pubs. Ireland has the second highest excise duty on alcohol in the EU. Diageo and Heineken have put up their price of drink five times in three years," said Davy.

“There were 14 pubs in Dunmore in 1994 and there are five left now. The wet pubs are closing in huge numbers. That figure of one in four in the report is way higher in rural Ireland. I don’t think one in four is a true reflection of what it is in rural Ireland.”

Regulations in Ireland currently state that Uber drivers must be licensed taxi drivers, which is not the case in many other countries that allow private individuals to operate as Uber drivers.

Davy Glynn said that having ordinary members of the public operate an Uber service would provide a fillip for pubs in rural locations.

“One thing that would majorly boost the pub trade is a proper rural Uber taxi service. It would be a system were vetted and registered drivers could make money at the weekend, get people from A to B and back safely. It could be a saving grace for pubs,” offered Davy.

“Pubs that are surviving or holding on, their long-term viability is questionable. I’m a fourth generation pub owner. The trade is fairly strong here, but you would worry about the future.

“A town with no night life in it has no character, in my opinion. If it’s all apartments in a town, then it’s a dead town.”

Paddy Mannion said that pubs are important to the fabric of life in rural areas, helping to ease the problem of isolation.

“The local pub is an outlet for people to meet, like the marts, in terms of loneliness and other things,” said Paddy.

“The sad aspect of rural life is that there are so many premises that are closed and derelict.”