'Diageo plant closure could cost local economy £15m'

Diageo's decision to close its Johnnie Walker whisky bottling and packaging plant in Kilmarnock is likely to cost the East Ayrshire economy about £15.5 million a year in the lost wages of 700 workers and work to local suppliers, John Swinney, the Scottish Finance Secretary claimed yesterday - The Telegraph ​

Drinking large amounts of alcohol in a single session, is the likely cause of an expanding waistline, particularly for women, rather than more steady drinking over time, research suggests. A study of almost 30,000 people in the former Soviet Union found that binge-drinkers who drank the equivalent of four to five pints of beer or a bottle of wine in one day were more likely to have a "beer belly" than those who drank the same amount, spread over the week - The Telegraph​

Scottish First Minister Alex Salmond has revealed details of a total of 13 bills for plans for the year ahead which includes an alcohol bill featuring minimum pricing - BBC News​

Alistair Darling's hopes the UK economy will recover by the end of the year were shattered today as experts forecast Britain will not return to growth until 2010. In yet another blow to Labour, Britain's recovery is expected to lag behind all the other major global economies - Daily Mail​

The Premier League was dealt a blow in its global fight against online piracy after a court in Israel threw out an attempt to shut down a pirate website that was showing live matches free of charge...the league will later this year face a challenge in the European courts, when UK publicans will argue that decoders bought elsewhere in Europe and imported are legal under free trade laws - Guardian ​