A SPATE of pub closures in Hull has triggered fears over whether a new generation of licensees is on the horizon.
Two of the city's best-known pubs – the Silver Cod, in Anlaby Road, and the Hastings Hotel, in Spring Bank West – closed suddenly last Friday.
Both are owned by the Trust Inns group, which is currently advertising them to let.
A hand-written notice in a window of the Hastings Hotel says: "Sorry we are closed until further notice."
Other recent pub closures in west Hull include The Eagle and The Three Crowns, in Anlaby Road, and The St George's Hotel in St George's Road.
In Spring Bank, the Tap and Spile shut recently while the Wellington, in Peel Street, has also closed in recent weeks.
Alan Canvess, chairman of the East Yorkshire branch of the Campaign for Real Ale, said: "Unfortunately, this situation has been with us for some time.
"One of the main problems is that many pubs are now owned by what are essentially property groups that make it very difficult for a licensee to make a living.
"These companies just see a pub as a property and have no real interest or passion for the pub trade or the local area a particular pub might service.
"If they can run a pub down and create an excuse to convert it into something else, they will do.
"My worry is that with so many pubs closing, good licensees are now leaving the trade and never coming back.
"You have to ask where the next generation are going to come from because it's very tough out there."
Mr Canvess said pubs near large urban areas should be able to survive.
He said: "These pubs on main roads near large areas of population should be doing OK.
"It's basically all about the way they are run.
"It's not usually the licensee, it's the owners."
