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The Government also introduced an increase in the minimum wage from £5.73 an hour to £5.80 for people aged 22 and over.
For the Government’s summary of the new legislation, click here
Nottingham plans total ban on street drinking
Nottingham could become the first city in England and Wales to introduce a total ban on street drinking under the Local Government and Public Involvement in Health Act 2007. Street drinking is already banned in the city centre and some surrounding areas but the new ban would cover all streets in Nottingham as well as parks and other public places.
Read more click here
New measure of two-thirds of a pint planned
The Government has proposed new legislation that will allow bars to serve beer and cider in measures of two-thirds of a pint. It also allows bars to offer wine in servings of less than 75ml for tastings, which follows the two-year Sip campaign by the Selfridges Wonder Bar.
Name change for S&N
Scottish & Newcastle UK is to change its name to Heineken UK from November 23 after its joint takeover by Heineken and Carlsberg. The S&N name will still be used for the pub business, which will become the Scottish & Newcastle Pub Company.
PM criticised for “proposal” to curb 24-hour licences
The Prime Minister has come under fire for his speech at this week’s Labour conference, when he said he proposed to give loc
al authorities “the power to ban 24-hour drinking throughout a community in the interests of local people”. Organisations such as the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers pointed out that the power to review licences was already available to councils through existing legislation, later confirmed by the Home Office.
Profits rise for Irn Bru manufacturer
Drinks group AG Barr, whose brands include Irn Bru, has reported a 19.5 per cent increase in pre-tax profits to £13.5million for the six months to August 1. Like-for-like sales rose by 11.5 per cent.
Manchester Food & Drink Festival under way
The Manchester Food & Drink Festival started on Thursday (October 1), running until October 12. It features events at restaurants and bars across the city, including a cocktail-making class at Apotheca and beer-and-food matching at Taps bar, plus the first Manchester Whisky Festival on October 10. Read more at www.foodanddrinkfestival.com.
Distribution of Whitley Neill gin changes hands
Halewood International has expanded its portfolio by taking over distribution of Whitley Neill gin from Mangrove, which reported that the brand had shown growth over the past two years. Mangrove said it was currently looking at a number of options for high-quality brands to join its portfolio.
Business at Enterprise Inns remains “resilient”
Enterprise Inns issued a pre-close trading statement saying that there had been no material change in its profit expectations for the year to September since its last statement in July. Business continues to be “resilient” and it suggests that beer volumes may be stabilising.
Community pubco reports losses
Pubs n Bars, which operates community pubs, has reported that revenues fell from £11.2million to £10.3million in the six months to June 30. A pre-tax profit of £128,000 a year ago has turned into a pre-tax loss of £690,000. It said that the smoking ban “continues to adversely affect traditional community pubs”, adding that trading remained “difficult” in the second half of the year.
Average price of beer in Surrey rises to over £3
The UK-wide average price of a pint of beer in a pub or bar has risen to £2.68 – up 10p on last year – with Surrey being the most expensive county, where a pint now costs £3.01, according to a survey by the Good Pub Guide 2010. In London, it has gone up to £2.90 while the cheapest beer is in the West Midlands, Nottingham and Staffordshire where the averag
e price is £2.40.
Hospitality firms “confident” about prospects
Nearly nine in 10 firms in the hospitality and leisure sector are confident about their prospects in the next six months, with strong profits in the first half driving the sense of optimism, according to new research from Santander Corporate Banking. It revealed that 89 per cent of hospitality and leisure firms were confident for the rest of 2009 compared to a national average of 75 per cent. Around one in four said they were “very confident”.
Mark Ludmon
Editor
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