Wetherspoon boss: ‘Not up to Burnham’ to choose who is on the high street Hospitality Britain’s pubs have few more committed defenders than Sir Tim Martin. The Norwich-born businessman founded JD Wetherspoon in 1979 when he bought his first pub in Muswell Hill, initially named Martin’s Free House. Since rebranding the pub to Wetherspoon – named after a former teacher of Martin’s who could not control his class – it [...]
Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin attacks government’s ‘unfriendly’ attitude to business Politics Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin has said he is “very concerned” by the wealth exodus gripping the UK as he hit out at Labour’s “unfriendly” attitude towards entrepreneurs. The pub tycoon said it is “madness” to blame the number of ultra-rich businesspeople leaving the country on anything other than the business conditions created by the government. [...]
Here’s the right way to criticise the media Opinion Did you catch Elon Musk’s blockbuster 90-minute interview with the Economist editor Zanny Minton Beddoes? It starts off with Musk’s predictions about the future of AI, which are interesting and alarming in equal measure. A lot of them sound far-fetched – will we really never need to work again in 10 years’ time? – but [...]
‘Ever-widening gap’: Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin urges Burnham to cut more pub taxes July 23, 2026 JD Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin has called on the Prime Minister to go further to reduce the soaring tax burden faced by pubs. The chairman of the UK’s best-known pub chain said Burnham’s decision to slash business rates for pubs is an “implicit recognition that the hospitality sector is over taxed”. The Prime Minister announced [...]
Wetherspoon shares dive as pub chain warns on profit again July 22, 2026 JD Wetherspoon shares slumped after it issued its fourth profit warning this year, as the pub chain grapples with surging food and energy costs and a rising business rates bill. Tim Martin, founder and chairman of the UK’s best-known pub chain, said: “Profits for the year are likely to be below market expectations, with marginally [...]
Wetherspoons and Young’s toast World Cup success as shares rocket July 14, 2026 Wetherspoon and other top London-listed pub groups have surged in value over the course of the World Cup as millions of revellers toasted the hot weather and the Three Lions’ success. Tim Martin’s budget pub chain, which is listed on the FTSE 250, has gained more than £75m in value since the start of the [...]
‘Not all sunlit uplands’: Pub bosses weigh in on whether Brexit leaves a bitter taste June 23, 2026 A decade on from the referendum, has Brexit left a bitter taste? The bosses of the UK’s biggest pub firms have their say Notoriously outspoken, the bosses of the UK’s leading pub brands are usually shouting about the same thing: the tax and regulatory burden threatening watering holes across the country. But, on the anniversary [...]
Would a £10bn VAT cut really save hospitality? June 20, 2026 Calls for the government to slash VAT on hospitality firms have been backed by pub and restaurant bosses, and Prime Minister hopeful Andy Burnham. What would this tax break really mean for the economy? The UK’s pubs, hotels and restaurants say they are at breaking point. Higher business rates, hikes to national insurance and minimum [...]
‘Reason to be optimistic’: Hospitality bosses say World Cup a lifeline for pubs June 9, 2026 Pub bosses are hoping for a much-needed boost from the World Cup this summer, as the hospitality industry warns of a crushing tax and cost burden. Leading pub chains Greene King and JD Wetherspoon have told City AM they are hoping for a “useful boost” to counteract the “layering of costs” they have faced in [...]
The Debate: Should airports ban early-morning pints? May 13, 2026 Ryanair boss Michael O'Leary has had enough of drunkards on flights, but is banning 5am airport pints the answer? We hear both sides.