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From the Irish Times
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Where do you think they will be? Is this a good thing? What sort of pubs will these be? I have seen some good Weatherspoons and some really bad ones.

Opinions, rants and conspiracy theories welcome below

As they like old banks there is an empty NIB in Malahide they could convert!! Prime spot next to the library!

Given the licensing laws here I'd imagine that they'll need to buy up existing pubs and their licenses before they buy the old banks.

Is it a good thing them coming here? If they put manners on some publicans who over charge, then yes. €6 for a 500ml bottle of beer in the pub is a little over the top.

If they sell beer ridiculously cheap it could be a bad thing too. The pubs can reduce their mark up but the breweries must get the right price for their beer.

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unfortunately Wetherspoons business model is based on getting punters drunk as quickly and as cheaply as possible. This will attract the type of crowd who think that "cheap" and "good value" mean the same thing.

its an interesting question.

On the one hand they're a big corporation - the kind of thing craft drinkers don't like in a brewery (so why should we like it in a pubco?).

On the other hand (Sorry Andrew, I have to disagree) they offer "good value" - reasonably priced food and a selection of cask ... of course like most pubs over the water mixed drinks are cheap, maybe too cheap, and there's plenty of macro beer too.

And while I'd love to see the Diageken/VFI cartel smashed, would we simply see a new monoply emerging in the form of the pubco???? - especially as our licensing laws are the real barrier to effective competition in the pub trade.

I'm still not sure which side of the fence I come down on this one .....