TOWN councillor and former Okehampton mayor Cllr the Rev Mike Davies took the opportunity to lobby the Parliamentary Under Secretary of State for Communities and Local Government about Devon's pubs last week.

Cllr Davies recently met Kris Hopkins MP, who is responsible for adult social care and community pubs, to try and address some of the issues he is seeing in the Okehampton area. The councillor has also written to him regarding the issues.

Cllr Davies said: 'When you drive through our towns and villages you see so many of our once prominent buildings closed and boarded and crumbling due to neglect. Some have been converted into houses or flats, some have become shops but something needs to be done to help the traditional pub.'

Cllr Davies welcomed the introduction of the 'assets of community value' contained within the Localism Act 2011.

He said: 'Although a historic public house can be added to the local community asset register, with the local community then having the right to bid, it still left the local community with the problem of raising capital for purchase and manpower for the continuation of the business.

'This did not prevent owners leaving buildings boarded and decaying.' He used the Plume of Feathers in Okehampton as a prime example.

'Traditional coaching houses are being left vacant and have become an eyesore. These once impressive buildings, usually in prominent sites, are becoming a blot of the landscape.'

He believes the solution is to take steps to prevent existing publicans from being forced out of business with current high beer duties, excessive planning regulations, together with lots of red-tape.

Cllr Davies also met with Andrew Griffiths — the MP who led the campaign to scrap the beer duty escalator and Tom Stainer, head of media communication for the Campaign for Real Ale.

Mike has further meetings planned to try and stop property owners from leaving these once historic public houses falling into ruin, and to help support the local landlord.­