Pubs, food & licensing restrictions. The Carlisle State Management Scheme 1916-1973
The announcement by Boris Johnson that after December 2nd pubs in England will only be able to open (subject to a 11pm curfew) if they are in the lowest tier of restrictions will, given no additional support was announced, be very bad news for millions in the hospitality sector.
Pubs in the highest Tier 3 will be shut except for take away while in Tier 2 pubs can serve alcohol with a ‘substantial meal’. The only saving grace here is that while Johnson certainly hasn’t a clue what that means, case law suggests that its not all that substantial.
There is of course no evidence of note as to why all this is needed and the reason for that is because there is none. The moves are motivated by a view that drinking less alcohol is good and drinking none at all is best. A key way of achieving that aim is to shut outlets for alcohol. The name for this is temperance but to be fair to the long history of temperance it is a view held only by the extreme wing of the movement which now appears to hold sway. Historically spirits were seen as the key problem (to a degree correctly) and drinking beer was acceptable.
Given the above it might reasonably be asked, where is your evidence?
It lies with the Carlisle State Management Scheme of pubs which ran from 1916 until 1973:
Revealed the 1916 logic behind 10pm pub closing
Some details of the scheme and how it worked are below.
It was driven by temperance which was strongly influential in Government at the time (as now it would seem)but promoted as something a little wider. The aim was to move pubs away from being hard drinking establishments to places where food was served in decent surroundings and pub games and recreation encouraged. A related aim was to move the pub away from being a male dominated environment and make it welcoming for women and children.
The scheme worked well and delivered substantial profits to the Government. It worked too well for temperance campaigners however who before long were complaining that it was making pubs too popular and encouraging women to drink beer..
Some details of the Carlisle scheme
…strict opening hours were enforced, the managers became government employees on a fixed salary and offered no inducement to increase alcohol sales (in fact, commissions were given to the sales of non-alcoholic drinks and food only). The sale of food was actively encouraged and ‘snug’ bars were re-purposed as eating areas. Pubs were made to be attractive to women and families and table service was introduced
Whenever a cup of tea or coffee or food is asked for it is the duty of managers to meet the customers’ requirements, providing that these are reasonable…This applies to both town and country houses. In country houses in particular Managers should endeavour to cultivate a reputation for good catering in the tearooms specifically set aside for the purpose
Carlisle & District State Management Scheme. Regulation 10
The Cumberland Inn, Carlisle
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