Beer sales slide, pub culture dying?

Could the UK pub culture really be under threat? I notice that fewer people were going out between the Christmas and New Year breaks the last few years. I thought the drop in restrictions on opening hours would help things, but now that the smoking ban has been introduced and alcohol prices in the pub growing ever higher, it seems that beer sales are suffering. Five pubs a day are shutting up shop.
Considering the fact that beer from the off-licence and supermarket is cheaper, and people have more home entertainment these days, no wonder more people are staying at home.
But the UK government´s attitude of using alcohol as the scape goat for causing anti-social behaviour doesn´t help. Even now they government are talking about banning supermarkets from selling beer under cost price. This all reminds me too much of the Al Capone years in the US when they tried to ban liquor. When will the government realise that hanging on a street corner with a tin of lager is because the youth have nothing else to do. Tackle the problem not the symptom.