PUBS across Wirral could be set to close, according to a trade union.
More than 350 venues in the North West run by Stonegate Pub Company are at risk of pulling their final pint, GMB Union has warned.
That comes after the company issued a profit warning, with Stonegate stating there is no guarantee it can continue as it struggles to refinance a £2.2 billion debt.
However, Stonegate – one of the biggest pub companies in the UK responsible for brands such as Slug and Lettuce, Yates and Walkabout – is confident no venues will close.
A spokesperson said: “We are really pleased with the performance of the business in 2023, which included a sector-leading Christmas trading period.
“We have delivered a rise in revenue and a significant increase in profitability. We have been very clear that we continue to work towards achieving our long-term balance sheet goals, with the successful refinancing of a portion of our estate in December marking a significant strategic step towards this.
“We would also like to assure our employees and partners that no venues are at risk as a result of this process.”
Stonegate operates 28 pubs across Wirral, including Sheridans, Montgomery and The Perch Rock as well as both Coach & Horses Hotel and the Dee View Inn.
Despite Stonegate, owned by TDR Capital, remaining confident, GMB Union has written to Liam Byrne MP.
They have called on the chair of the Business and Trade Select Committee to recall TDR bosses.
Nadine Houghton, GMB national officer, said: "TDR bosses are private equity gamblers- playing fast and loose with people’s jobs and lives.
“When their risky ventures go wrong, they swan off to their next project, leaving workers and communities to pick up the pieces.
“Now, hundreds of much-loved pubs across the North West are now in serious danger of pulling their last pint.
“It’s a disgrace.”
The Stonegate pubs in Wirral
- Seven Stars, Church Road, Thornton Hough, Wirral CH63 1JW
- The Claughton Hotel, 50 Upton Road, Birkenhead CH41 0DH
- Heather Brow, 1 Heather Brow, Prenton CH43 8TB
- Montgomery, 47 Stanley Lane, Wirral CH62 0AG
- Rake Hotel, Mill Park Drive, Wirral CH62 9AY
- Hooton Arms, 89 Eastham Village Road, Eastham, Wirral CH62 0AN
- Sportsmans Arms, 9 Prenton Road East, Tranmere CH42 7LQ
- Dee View Inn, 2 Dee View Road, Wirral CH60 0DH
- Lake, 36 Lake Place, Wirral CH47 2DW
- Ship Inn, 80 Market Street, Wirral CH47 3BB
- Plasterers Arms, 35 Back Seaview, Wirral CH47 2DJ
- Sandbrook, 74 Chapelhill Road, Wirral CH46 9QW
- Queens Arms, Liscard Village, Wallasey CH45 4JR
- The Boot, 55 Wallasey Road, Liscard, Wallasey CH44 2AA
- The Tower, 1 Liscard Way, Wallasey CH44 5TL
- Coach & Horses, 202 Hoylake Road, Wirral CH46 6AD
- The Perch Rock, 7 Grosvenor Road, Wallasey CH45 2LW
- Clarence Hotel, 89 Albion Street, Wallasey CH45 9JQ
- Sandridge Hotel, 1 Rowson Street, Wallasey CH45 5AR
- The Pilot Boat, 15 Magazine Brow, New Brighton CH45 1HP
- Telegraph Inn, 25-27 Mount Pleasant Road, Wallasey CH45 5EN
- Queens Arms, 1 Storeton Road, Prenton CH43 5TL
- Halfway House, 293 Woodchurch Road, Prenton CH42 9QE
- Coach & Horses Hotel, Greasby Road, Greasby, Wirral CH49 3NG
- The Farmers Arms, 167 Hillbark Road, Wirral CH48 1NJ
- Willows, Saughall Massie Road, Upton, Wirral CH49 4LA
- Woodchurch, Grasswood Road, Wirral CH49 7NX
- Sheridans, 80 Wallasey Village, Wallasey CH45 3LQ
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