Wetherspoon drops Heineken and Murphy's over Dún Laoghaire pub row

A British pub chain will not sell Heineken and Murphy's stout at its pubs in Ireland and the UK.

JD Wetherspoon, which operates 926 pubs in the UK and Ireland, has dropped the beers after a dispute over the supply of beer to its new pub in Dún Laoghaire.

The pub chain, which has plans to open 30 bars in the Republic, claims the Dutch brewer refused to supply Heineken lager and Murphy’s to its newly revamped Forty Foot pub in Dún Laoghaire.

They said Heineken made “obstructive” demands for personal guarantees from chief executive John Hutson in order to supply any other products to its Dún Laoghaire venture.

Wetherspoon chairman Tim Martin said: “We have been trading with Heineken for 35 years and they have never requested personal guarantees before.

“It’s obstructive to do so now, especially when we made record profits of around £80m last year,” he added.

“The refusal to supply Heineken lager and Murphy’s just before the opening of our new pub in Dún Laoghaire, which represents an investment by us of nearly €4m, is unacceptable and hard to understand.”

Wetherspoon had been selling Heineken, the Republic’s biggest-selling draught beer, and Murphy’s for less than €3 a pint in its other Irish pub - The Three Tun Tavern in Blackrock, Dublin.

The firm has also bought the former Light Nightclub in Blanchardstown as well as venues in Swords in Dublin and in Cork city.