More than 2,100 pubs have closed across Ireland since 2005, a 24.6% drop, the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI), an organization representing alcohol distributors and retailers, announced on Monday. There are now 6,498 pubs operating in the country.
A report published by DIGI found that an average of 112 pubs had closed each year over the past 20 years. This translates to one pub closing almost every three days.
The largest decline in the number of pubs was recorded in rural areas and small towns in counties Limerick (37.2%), Offaly (34.1%) and Cork (32.7%), while the fewest pubs closed in the capital, Dublin (1.7%), and in counties Meath (9.5%) and Wicklow (10.8%).
The report's author, economist Anthony Foley, predicts that between 600 and 1,000 pubs will disappear in Ireland over the next 10 years, which he believes will have a significant impact on the local economy and social customs. He cited the high cost of doing business as the main reasons, along with market uncertainty related to the introduction of US tariffs and a decline in tourist visits to Ireland.
To halt the pub closures, Foley appealed to the Irish government to lower the VAT rate on alcoholic beverages from the current 23 percent to 10 percent. This rate is the second highest in the EU, after Finland.
Marta Zabłocka (PAP)
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