Overview
- Like-for-like sales rose 3.7% in the 14 weeks to 2 November, with bar revenue up 5.7% and hotel room sales down 6.3%.
- The company says increases to wages, national insurance, energy charges and packaging taxes have added about £60 million to annual costs.
- Tim Martin said a 10% wage rise would add roughly 15p to the price of a pub pint compared with about 1.5p in a supermarket.
- The group adopted a slightly more cautious outlook ahead of the 26 November Budget after the Chancellor warned of possible income tax rises.
- Martin also criticised UK corporate governance rules such as the “nine-year rule,” linking them to London’s weak IPO market and noting just £184 million raised on the LSE in the first nine months of 2025.