Landlords of pubs owned by major breweries will get more support under government reforms announced this morning.

Tenants of so-called ‘tied pubs’ often complain of mistreatment by their parent company and some claim to earn less than the minimum wage, despite working long hours.

The landlords have to buy their beer from the owning company, usually at an above-market price. Normally subsidised rent and benefits make up for the higher charges, but not always.

Under the new code tenants will be given new powers to challenge the parent company, including:

- Right to request a rent review if they haven’t had one for five years

- Access to information underpinning the decision to increase rents

- Tied tenants will be able to compare their rents with non-tied pubs for comparison

- Right to choose whether to be tied for gaming machines

- New adjudicator will hear claims by tied tenants of breaches of the code

Deputy prime minister Nick Clegg said: "For too long, landlords who are tied to larger pub companies have struggled to make ends meet – over half earning less than the minimum wage.

“The self regulatory approach hasn’t worked, so these new rules will give fairer treatment for landlords so that they can keep your local pub going strong.”

Business secretary Vince Cable added: “Far too many landlords feel their income is squeezed by big pub companies. So today we are taking action to make sure they get a fairer deal.”