'Chancellor in low spirits as PBR blunder rectified'
The Chancellor was forced to backtrack on a key element of his Pre-Budget Report on Wednesday after he admitted that the Treasury had got its sums wrong and raised the duty on spirits by too much. The Scotch whisky industry had pointed out that the eight per cent rise would have increased the average bottle of whisky by 29p, whereas in his Commons speech the Chancellor had said that the duty measures "should keep the overall cost to consumers the same this year" - The Times
Restaurant and pub group Mitchells & Butlers is calling time on shareholder dividends for the next two years - so it can pay bank debts. The All Bar One and Harvester owner said it had little choice but to scrap the payout to "protect the value of the business" - The Sun
Today the Campaign for Real Ale and the British Beer and Pub Association are launching a campaign to "Save the Great British Pub" with an "axe the beer tax" campaign. The save-the-pub campaign is the last-chance saloon for the traditional local - The Daily Telegraph
A poster advert of a ladyboy clad in stockings and underwear next to claims Tiger Beer is the Far East's "most desirable export" has been ruled "offensive." The advert shows a small picture of a bottle of Tiger Beer and a model in the foreground with a star positioned over their crotch. The Advertising Standards Authority received eight complaints that the model - who the complainants believed to be a woman - was offensive - The Sun
Alistair Darling will be a thirsty man if he ever finds himself in Sunderland. For the Chancellor has been banned from a string of city bars and clubs by businessman Tony Griffiths. Tony's Wylam Leisure chain runs a series of high-profile venues across Wearside, including The Glass Spider, Paddy Whacks, ttonic, Cheers, The Eastender, The Queen Vic Hotel and The Pullman Lodge Hotel. He explained the ban was a protest against a tax system which he believes encourages supermarkets to flog booze at knock-down prices - The Sunderland Echo
