JD Wetherspoon ends 99p deal

JD Wetherspoon has ended its controversial 99p-pint deal.

The managed operator has dropped the offer for pints of Ruddles and bottles of San Miguel in its new price list that came in on 1 April.

Ruddles is now available for £1.29 per pint. Becks has replaced San Miguel in the offer and sells for the same price.

Wetherspoons launched the deal in January and said it would continue "indefinitely".

The 99p deal initially applied to pints of Greene King IPA but it was later replaced by the Suffolk brewer's Ruddles beer. Greene King was furious with the deal, arguing that it undermined its flagship beer brand.

JD Wetherspoon spokesman Eddie Gershon said: "At £1.29 it is probably still the best price available and allows the company to keep the price for a longer period of time.

"Twelve weeks is a good amount of time and a fair reflection on us looking after customers."

Wetherspoons' like-for-like sales were up 6% in the first couple of weeks of January, with the cut-price deal cited as a reason.

Gershon added: "Wetherspoon is thriving at the moment and for good reasons. The fact we are able to offer extremely good value, especially from January onwards, has been a very positive thing."

He said there was no time limit given for the latest price promotion.