OFT meddling led to the pub industry’s problems

It’s a warning from history. This year it is 20 years since the The Supply of Beer (Tied Estate) Order and The Supply of Beer (Loan Ties, Licensed Premises and Wholesale Prices) Order, or the Beer Orders, came into force. It’s a move that many consider did a significant amount of harm to Britain’s pub trade.

This sorry tale all stems from an OFT investigation and referral to what is now the Competition Commission in the 1980s. Today the UK’s deregulated bus industry is...