Spoons boss Tim Martin tells Rachel Reeves to ‘save British pubs for our psychological well being’

EXCLUSIVE: The Daily Star sat down with JD Wetherspoon boss Sir Tim Martin to discuss the health of the pub industry as part of our deep dive into the issues facing the nation’s boozers

Wetherspoons boss Sir Tim Martin has urged Chancellor Rachel Reeves to act to save the UK’s pubs and protect our mental health.

He sat down with the Daily Star at The Moon Under Water pub in Watford, close to the Wetherspoons HQ, to send a clear message: “You see how important pubs are when there aren’t any”.

He had walked to our interview, something he regards as key to good health, but warned that pubs too have their part to play in the nation’s wellbeing.

Since he first opened Martin’s Free House in Muswell Hill in 1979, the 69-year-old’s empire has gone from strength, reimagining the British pub scene with its innovative acquisition of everything from old theaters and shops, to banks and newspaper offices.

He is often outspoken and has proved divisive at points over his long career, particularly over his stance on Brexit and Covid lockdowns, but as he arrived at the venue he was among friends as drinkers shook his hand and asked for selfies.

True to form, Martin weaponised the company’s January financial update to take aim at a political elite he termed “dinner party goers, rather than pub goers” as part of his ongoing bid for equal taxation with supermarkets.

“I was winding them up a bit there, wasn’t I?” he said, breaking out in a booming laugh that caused him to rock forward, shoulders bumping up and down. But despite the joke he cut a weary figure, like a doomsayer in a room full of people wearing headphones, ahead of the government’s anticipated National Insurance Contributions hike from 13.8% to 15%.

“Me speaking to Rachel at this stage is a lost cause,” he said. “I would say, if you want to preserve pubs, Rachel, and [Prime Minister Keir Starmer] and other politicians, then you will have to equalise tax with supermarkets, because pubs have lost over 50% of their beer trade and wine to supermarkets in the last 25 years, and as taxes have gone up the differential in price between pubs and supermarkets have increased.

“Particularly in pubs, Rachel, 35% of the cost of a pint is wages, when you buy a pint in the supermarket, it’s only 5% or 6% so its far lower impact on supermarkets when you push up things like employers’ National Insurance. So bear these things in mind – pubs are a good thing for the country, they generate masses of employment, they generate masses of taxes. Be fair. We want equality.”

As he pointed out, he’s now four years past retirement age, and showed little sign of either slowing or piping down as he chatted, sipping on a coffee, telling us he still travels two hours into the office for a couple of days every week from his home in the South West.

For the father of four, the importance of British pubs goes beyond just being able to nip down and grab a pint.

“I think [pubs] are very important informal therapists,” the Norwich-born mogul explained. “We’re social animals – we need human contact and if you stay home and become isolated, it’s not very good for your mental health.

“I think exercise is good – specifically walking, you don’t need to go to the gym – and then work is good, I think we’re built to work and people who work are happier. And the other thing is the pub. The pub is the hub, I think the King said, and he’s right about that. Work, exercise, pubs,” he said, before cheekily adding, “My Mrs would say, ‘and the Mrs’, but that’s more debatable.”

Since the pandemic, talk of a ‘closure crisis’ has circled the pub industry. Data published by the British Beer and Pub Association revealed last month that in 2024 almost 300 pubs shuttered for good. This, Sir Tim says, cannot be understated.

“The dangers facing pubs are not hyped up, they’re real, and I was gobsmacked myself to read a city analyst from Morgan Stanley say that pubs have lost 53% of their beer sales to supermarkets.

“No business can lose that much volume without causing a crisis, so it’s definitely real. It’s not hyped up.

“Some companies still do well, Wetherspoons still do well but overall for the industry and the restaurant industry, it’s been very tough.”

Much of the talk surrounding the threat faced by boozers has focused on changes in drinking habits, particularly younger generations turning their noses up at the prospect of getting sozzled. This, however, is nonsense to Martin.

“I have sympathy for Generation Z,” he said, making a point to use the British pronunciation of the Z, rather than the American ‘zee’ more commonly used in this context.

“Because what’s happened is the tax system has been stacked in favour of supermarkets and against pubs and restaurants and that pushed up the price of beer in pubs and allowed supermarkets to sell it very cheaply.

“And so the result of that is Generation Z, who are starting out on their careers often, find pubs prohibitively expensive.

“So I think tax is the reason,” he continued, before adding with a twinkle in his eye, “I am skeptical that Generation Z is a new type of humanity that is extremely well behaved and all the rest of it – I think humanity stays the same and I think Generation Z, they’ll be horrified to hear, are just like me.”