CAMRA 'super-complaint' re-opens

The beer-tie: Dampening consumer choice?

Consultation begins to avoid expense of appeal

Britain’s Office of Fair Trading (OFT) is looking again at the Campaign for Real Ale’s claim that the infamous ‘beer-tie’ is being exploited by unscrupulous pub operators and damaging market competition.

The OFT today opened a six-week consultation period on the pressure group’s so-called ‘super complaint’, which it slung out last October having found that the beer-tie has no adverse effect on consumers. CAMRA appealed the ruling.

“Having carefully considered CAMRA’s grounds of appeal, the OFT believes it has a firm basis to defend the appeal,” the body said in a statement. “However the OFT is mindful of the substantial resource that both it and CAMRA would need to invest in litigation.

“The OFT has therefore decided that it would be a more constructive use of resources to allow CAMRA and any other interested persons or groups the opportunity to make representations about the findings it reached in its response to the super complaint.”

CAMRA, which has agreed to adjourn appeal proceedings until the end of the consultation, told BG today that it welcomed the decision. The body’s research and information manager Iain Loe said he was confident new information would come to light that would sway the OFT.

He added: “We are very pleased that we have an open consultation for the next six weeks and we certainly encourage anyone with evidence to put it forward to the OFT.”

Responses to the OFT’s dismissal of the super-complaint should be emailed to CAMRAsuper-complaint@oft.gsi.gov.uk or sent to: CAMRA Super-complaint Team, OFT, Fleetbank House, 2-6 Salisbury Square, London, EC4Y 8JX. The deadline for representations is 5pm on March 24th.

Image courtesy of the Cask Report 2010.