Pubs - what for the future without Gordon?

And so the shouting is over. The wheeling and dealing is done. Gordon is a Gonner. Now it’s the Dave and Nick Show.

With a humongous £900bn national debt, the bankers still in need of a damn good thrashing and a pledge to some £6bn of spending cuts, the coalition government has got big job on its hands. Pubs, you may reasonably think, will be very low on the agenda.

But should they be? Under Labour thousands of pubs closed, but as Gordon and his crew neared their demise there were signs that the arguments for saving our unique national heritage could be just be hitting the spot. There was even a short-lived Minister for Pubs before Labour’s demise. John Healey put in place a 12 point plan to help pubs.

The new lot might be wise to carry this through. Not least because if they can stop the rot and get people back in the pub it may buck up the nation’s spirit a bit.

There are many complex reasons for pubs being in this mess. Aside from the the dire economy brought on my those dodgy bank deals, supermarket beer discounting, the smoking ban and, not least, the stranglehold of the major pub companies have all conspired against the pub in recent years.

Yes, there are some pub companies that are still doing well. Not least Brunning & Price - with a hugely successful 'formula' entirely different to the leased pub model - which is still opening new pubs. But abandoned and shuttered pubs have blighted the land for far too long; places like Calderdale where historic hostelries once thrived, are a national disgrace. Even here, in rural Cheshire, I pen this piece barely a good stone’s throw only from a derelict edifice to this scandalous neglect.

Do we have any reason to be optimistic? Well, during election night we saw David Cameron visit his local in the Cotswolds (ok that’s not Calderdale but it's a start) – and we are told he has been a regular visitor over the years.

Nick Clegg lives in the ‘pub capital’ of Britain – Sheffield. When I chatted with him at Moorhouse’s in Burnley (see photograph) earlier this year he made the right noises about looking closely at the pub co beer tie. This system has been condemned as a highly unjust financial burden for leaseholders that also prevents beer choice for consumers. Maybe Nick can make a difference.

As the Publican trade paper set out the parties' policies just before the election, both Cameron and Clegg were pictured drinking ale. (Brown was pictured empty handed. I don't know if that was significant. Perhaps he just hadn’t had time for pint for a few years).

Next month, with a new budget we will know more about just how the government will treat the industry – still a massive employer and huge source of revenue through duty and national insurance contributions.

There are some differences between the Tories and Lib Dems on pub issues, although they agree on banning low cost alcohol sales, no rise in National Insurance contributions and granting automatic rate relief.

The Conservatives say they would raise taxes on drinks “linked to anti-social behaviour”, although they would reverse Labour’s planned 10%-above-inflation alcohol tax hike. The Lib Dems would review the “ill-thought-through” alcohol tax system, including the beer duty escalator, so it targets bingeing but not responsible drinkers and pubs. Let's hope they can sort this lot out between them.

On the beer tie the Tories are a bit soft, saying the industry should have a chance to implement self-regulation by June 2011, before enforcing a statutory code. The Lib Dems are tougher, proposing a statutory code to ensure tied tenants aren’t worse off than free-of-tie, and asking the Competition Commission to probe the tie.

Meanwhile, the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) has written to the new Prime Minister urging a new pubs minister be appointed.

Mike Benner, CAMRA chief executive,took solace from David Cameron choosing to enjoy a pint on Election Night. And apparently three members of the Cabinet have signed signed the Back the Pub pledge from the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA). This calls for support for British pubs “as part of efforts to enhance community life and promote economic recovery”. Signatories included the formidable new business secretary Vince Cable, so that’s impressive. More than 400 candidates signed the pledge - 138 were elected.

So maybe there is a glimmer of hope that many pubs and communities across the land can look to a brighter future.

I find that life really is full of surprises. Three months ago at Moorhouse's, showing the political acumen at least equal the other Nick (Robinson) at the BBC, I considered Clegg 'a nice chap but with no chance'.

Mind you, this is par for my political judgement course. I recall, back in the eighties as a young journalist in the North East, I made a similar sweeping judgement on meeting another, rather scruffily dressed, aspiring young politician; bloke called Blair. So you just never know with this funny business of politics. I'm sticking to the beer.