'It's getting harder to survive in the trade' - 130 Mayo pubs closed since 2005

One-hundred-and-thirty Mayo pubs have shut their doors since 2005, with 35 of these closing since 2019.

According to a new report by the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI), Mayo experienced the eighth-highest reduction in pubs of any county in Ireland.

Last year there were 337 pubs in Mayo, compared to 467 in 2005.

The number of pubs in the county has fallen by 27.8 per cent, with Donegal (26.3 per cent) and Leitrim (28.6 per cent) experiencing similar drops.

The Irish Pub: Supporting our communities report, shows a 22.5 per cent decline in the number of pubs in Ireland from 2005 to 2022. This represents a closure of 1,937 pubs.

Reacting to the news, publican Joe O'Malley told The Mayo News that it is becoming 'harder to survive' in the pub train. 

Mr O'Malley, who owns pubs in Westport and Casltebar, described the level of excise duty on alcohol as 'crazy'. 

"The costs are getting higher and since Covid I think everything has gone up," he said.

"It's changing and definitely. There’s less and less people seems to be drinking and I know we’re fortunate enough in Westport we’ve a lot of tourist comes to the town and they come and they like to enjoy themselves but definitely you can see it with the rural pubs."

DIGI warned that rural areas were being disproportionately hit by closures and called on the government to reduce excise duty on alcohol sales by 15 per cent over two years.

"A decrease in excise duty would - considering the importance of pubs for the cultural and social survival of the small towns and villages where they operate – support local communities and rural areas in line with Government policy into the future," said Anthony Foley, Economist and Associate Professor Emeritus, Dublin City University.