Just days after prime minister Rishi Sunak visited CAMRA’s Great British Beer Festival, new research commissioned by the Campaign shows two in five Brits (43 per cent) don’t trust any of the Conservative, Labour or Liberal Democrat political party leaders to look out for the interests of British pubs. 

Labour’s Keir Starmer fared best, with 17 per cent of Britons saying they would trust him to look out for pubs, while Conservative PM Rishi Sunak only had the trust of nine per cent. Liberal Democrat leader Ed Davey came in at the bottom of the pack with just three per cent believing he would back pubs.

CAMRA has always maintained party-political neutrality in its campaigning having worked closely with all sides in its 50-year history. The network of grassroots campaigners that make up the 150,000-strong organisation works with elected representatives at every level, as well as fighting for pubs, clubs, brewers and cider makers with more direct campaigning.

Despite recent lobbying successes for the Campaign, including the introduction of a lower rate of tax for beer and cider sold on draught, the organisation has voiced its concerns for the future of British pubs.

CAMRA’s national chairman Nik Antona said: “Sadly, this data suggests that the public’s perception is that our beloved locals have often been an afterthought in politics. We often hear politicians playing lip service to the community and social value of our locals – which is brilliant – but we need that to be backed up with meaningful action. 

“With a general election approaching, these results should be a wake up call for politicians, who need to have substantive policies in place to address the catalogue of issues facing the pub trade.

“CAMRA believes our pubs and social clubs deserve a fighting chance with urgent action needed on energy prices, business rates, a fix for the takeaway pints issue caused by the new Alcohol Duty system, and the right for licensees to choose what products they keep on the bar without stock lists being dictated by pub companies.”

More information about the survey can be found here.