The Independent Pub Alliance exists to address a growing imbalance in how pubs and small hospitality businesses are treated by public policy in the UK.
Independent public houses — particularly community-focused freehouses and small operators — are being placed at a structural disadvantage by tax, regulatory and policy frameworks that increasingly favour scale, standardisation and corporate extraction. These pressures are not the result of consumer choice or business failure, but of systems designed around large, vertically integrated models which do not reflect the public value public houses provide.
Pubs are not just places of consumption. At their best, they are open, secular “third spaces” — part of the UK’s social infrastructure — supporting social connection, informal care, local identity and community wellbeing. Their value should not be measured solely in terms of turnover or productivity, yet current policy largely ignores their status as public assets.
The Alliance brings together independent publicans, hospitality workers, researchers and supporters to identify and evidence these imbalances, challenge unequal treatment, and advocate for evidence based restructure that serves the public interest rather than the commercial priorities of the largest players.
We are not a trade body. We are not funded by pub companies, brewers, hospitality groups or corporate lobbyists. We do not represent tied estates, managed chains or multinational operators. We do not align with any political party. Our work is independent, transparent and grounded in evidence and lived experience.
Where we agree with other organisations, we will work alongside them. Where we disagree, we will say so openly and respectfully. Our sole test is whether policy treats public houses fairly and whether decisions are being made in the public interest.
Public houses matter economically, socially and culturally. This manifesto sets out the changes required to ensure public policy recognises that fact — not through favouritism or nostalgia, but through fairness.
Read our full manifesto here: