'Supermarkets must display alcohol warning posters for pregnant women''
Supermarkets and off-licences will have to display posters warning pregnant women not to drink and other health risks surrounding alcohol, under Government plans to tackle binge drinking. "Irresponsible" promotions such "all you can drink" or the "dentist's chair" will be subject to a blanket ban as part of a new mandatory code for licencees - The Telegraph
Absurd" licensing laws could be damaging the prospects of young musicians, MPs have warned. Pubs and small live venues are being unfairly hit by draconian licensing measures, and the police's "increasingly authoritarian approach" to live music is holding back emerging artists, the culture, media and sport select committee said in a report published today - The Guardian
Pub chain Enterprise Inns is spending more than £2million a month bailing out ailing landlords and freezing prices. In a sign of how tough life has become, the firm has tripled its help for licensees in the past year. Enterprise is losing £1.4m a month from cutting tenants' rent bills or discounting drinks prices - The Mirror
The recommendation by MPs that the "tied" pub model be referred to the Competition Commission was greeted with glee by the vocal minority of tenants who believe the big pub companies are voracious money-grabbers squeezing them dry with high rents and higher beer prices. For their part, the pubcos claimed that the "highly emotive" report failed to address the real reasons why 39 pubs a week are closing - recession, smoking ban, supermarkets, duty and so on - The Times
Licensed premises: The Culture, Media and Sport Committee has concluded that the Licensing Act 2003 had "broadly speaking" been a success, although it added that it was too bureaucratic and required some reform - The Times
Pubs: The bosses of Britain's biggest pub companies have criticised a parliamentary report into the "tied" pub business model, dismissing its conclusions of "systematic and widespread abuse" of tenants - The Times
