| An Oswestry pub has been put up for sale with agents blaming the new smoking ban and economic difficulties for the closure.The Castle Inn, on Castle Street, is unlikely to continue as a pub once sold according to West Hampstead licensed property agents Paramount Properties. The state of the economy has hit the pub trade hard, says Paramount's managing director, Mark Greig: "The pub trade is going through troubled times thanks to last year's poor summer, the smoking ban and fears of a recession."If no-one from the hospitality industry steps forward to buy The Castle, it could cease to be a pub at all."Oswestry Borough Councillor Bill Benyon, believes the pub industry has problems: "Due to the decline in the market there are too many pubs to sustain the it," he explained, going on to say that many pubs in the area are in trouble, including the Unicorn; which has been closed for several weeks.Cllr Benyon was former secretary of the disbanded Oswestry Licensed Victuallers Association, a roup of landlords that would meet and discuss issues regarding pubs in the area. The LVA ended after the licensing laws were amended.Iain Loe, a spokesperson for the Campaign for Real Ale, said he believes groups such as Licensed Victuallers Associations are important to towns such as Oswestry, adding: "An area without an LVA is an area where pub licensees are without a voice and where they have no representation."According to the British Beer and Pub Association almost 30 pubs a week are currently closing in the UK due to issues like the recent smoking ban, compared to 2006 where just four a week would close. At the rate of closure the BBPA believes that many villages will be without pubs in the future, with the continuing increase in the price of alcohol also putting pressure on the pub trade.Paramount say that if it ceases to be a pub, The Castle may become a shop, restaurant or residential accommodation.
Paramount Investments are specialists in sourcing freehold and leasehold UK pubs for sale and other pub company or brewery investment opportunities in England, Scotland and Wales for potential property investors.
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West Hampstead
London NW6 1SD
Tel: 020 7644 2333
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