Thu 28th Jan 2016 - Greene King joins trade body Greene King joins trade body: The UK’s largest pub retailer and brewer, Greene King, is to become a member of the British Hospitality Association. The move comes as a surprise because the company has not been a member of any trade bodies since it resigned from the British Beer and Pub Association more than five years ago. The role of the British Hospitality Association is to champion the needs of hospitality and tourism businesses, securing and promoting competitiveness. Rooney Anand, Greene King chief executive, said: “Our recent acquisition of Spirit Pub Company signals an opportunity to align more closely with our peers in the wider hospitality industry to provide a strong voice to government. We are committed to raising the visibility of the industry as it continues to drive the UK economy and deliver strong new job creation.” Greene King has also pledged to be a keen supporter of the BHA’s long running campaign to inspire the next generation of young people into a career in hospitality and the company will participate in the BHA’s Big Hospitality Conversation events across the UK during 2016. Anand added: “With 42,000 team members at Greene King, including over 2,000 apprentices, our business priority is to attract, retain and develop the very best people. That is why we have decided to join the BHA, which has done so much to encourage more talent into hospitality and tourism.” Ufi Ibrahim, chief executive of the British Hospitality Association said: “We are delighted to welcome Greene King into our membership. With employment issues currently taking centre stage, we are lobbying to help alleviate the huge impact of the National Living Wage on this industry and for the introduction of an Apprenticeship Training Academy to support SMEs and longer apprenticeship periods to allow for seasonality. Greene King will provide valuable perspective and leadership for the pub and brewing industry on these issues and many more.”