'Anti-beer tie claims are "misleading", says Enterprise boss'

"Ahead of announcing his group's interim results on Tuesday, Enterprise Inns' chief executive Ted Tuppen claims a lot of what is said about the beer tie is 'deliberately misleading'. 'It's very easy to tell people who aren't prepared to properly understand the contracts that they pay more for their beer,' he says. 'Unfortunately, the campaigners all talk about how much more they have to pay for their beer and fail to mention they are paying substantially less for their rent. That is the principle of the tie - because you are tied, you pay substantially less for your rent.' He scoffs at the idea that the arrangement is somehow inequitable, pointing out that tenants are all there of their own volition and that the ones who negotiated directly with the company are fully aware of all the requirements in the contract, and had to have a business plan approved." - Sunday Times​

"MPs are expected to start a shake-up of the UK's struggling pub sector when the influential Business and Enterprise Committee publishes its report Pub Company Power on Wednesday. With estimates suggesting that around six pubs close down every day, the committee will reveal its long-awaited findings into the trade and the so-called 'beer tie'. Under the traditional tie, companies lease pubs to tenants in exchange for exclusive beer and drink sales. In the past, rents were kept low, but spiralling costs have prompted dramatic rent rises. The report may propose a monopolies investigation, although a watering down of the beer tie is thought more likely." - Independent on Sunday ​

"More than 1,600 pubs are up for sale after the biggest slump in beer sales for 70 years. And most of the boarded-up locals will never reopen as breweries sell the buildings - often with gardens and car parks - off to developers. Around 39 bars are closing every week. The Campaign for Real Ale says owners are more interested in property deals. Spokesman Iain Loe said: 'Our centuries-old pub heritage is being lost because they're not looking after them.'" - The Mirror​

"The office of the European Parliament in London has devised a special quiz to celebrate Europe Day, an annual celebration which was marked across the continent on Saturday. Questions include: How many staff does the European Commission employ? How many time zones are there in the European Union? What is EU's guiding principle which means decisions should be taken as close to the citizen as possible? Officials hope that pub teams across the country will now rise to the challenge. The quiz comes complete with 10 rounds of 10 questions, score cards, and even tie-breaker questions. Every round is about the EU and Europe, with titles including 'A-Z of the EU', 'Words and languages' and 'Connecting the continent'. - Daily Telegraph​

"Nightclubs operator Luminar, which runs the Oceana, Liquid and Lava & Ignite chains, is expected to announce a fall in annual profits from £31.5m to around £20m on Thursday, after reducing prices and increasing promotional spend in an attempt to bring in fresh customers. And Enterprise Inns is due to update investors on progress in paying down debts of £4.7bn when it produces an interim trading update on Tuesday. The group, which has some 7500 outlets, has seen its shares soar in recent weeks on hopes that it will be able to meet its commitments by offloading pubs to the likes of Greene King and Wetherspoon amid signs that the beer market is stabilising." - Sunday Herald​