The Fair Pour Pub was open for business at the Queen’s Head in Holborn on Tuesday this week, as Oxfam ran a scheme to raise awareness about the problem of income inequality.

There was a special non-alcoholic drinks menu for the event that included cocktails such as ‘A Billionaire’s Dream’ and the ‘Old Money Fashioned’, with all proceeds going to the charity.

Anna Marriott, Oxfam’s Senior Policy Advisor, told City News that the pub operated a “two-tiered pricing scheme.”

Billionaires were charged £1 million for their pint, with everyone else making a minimum donation of £3 plus whatever else they would like to contribute on top of that.

She said the scheme aimed to “shine a light on just how extreme the inequality has become in our economy”, highlighting how wealth has been ‘hoarded at the top.’

Drinkers were supportive of this unusual concept.

One customer said that they would be OK with paying more for their drink based on their net worth, if it meant that someone who couldn’t afford a pint was able to buy one.

Another said it was a “really good initiative to help bring home the issue of wealth inequality.”

Pub sign saying 'serving last orders on an unfair system'.
The pop-up event aims to raise awareness of wealth inequality

Data from anti-poverty campaigners Trust for London points to the wealth inequality across the capital.

For example, the stats show that the average income in the City of London is more than double that of Barking and Dagenham.

There is even disparity within boroughs. In Wandsworth, Clapham Common West appears to have an average income that is nearly three times as high as Roehampton North West, despite the two neighbourhoods being just a few miles apart.

The Fairness Foundation, which aims to tackle inequality in Britain, believes that authorities need to do more.

Chief Executive Will Snell is calling on the government to introduce more “radical reforms” to alleviate the “worsening trajectory of income inequality”, including changes to the tax system

When City News contacted the Mayor of London for a response, his office pointed to a £3.5 million investment in advice services to support low-income Londoners and how Sadiq Khan ran a scheme that it claims “helped to unlock £17 million of Pension Credit for older, lower-income Londoners.”

Oxfam and the Fairness Foundation hope that schemes like the Fair Pour Pub will start more conversations about income inequality in London.