MINISTERIAL RESPONSIBILITY FOR PUBS AND CLUBS

That this House welcomes the appointment of a Pubs Minister to help stem the tide of pub closures; and calls on the Government to extend the remit of the Minister to include non profit-making private members' clubs such as those in membership of the Committee of Registered Clubs' Associations and the Working Men's Club and Institute Union which are at the heart of many communities and which are also suffering from the economic downturn, the negative effects of well-meaning government legislation and the over-zealous attentions of HM Revenue and Customs.