Top 10 stories of 2011
1 Karen Murphy wins European case against Premier League (3 October)
The European Court of Justice has ruled against the Premier League, stating that pubs can show football matches via foreign (European) TV decoders. The ECJ ruled that restricting the sale of European foreign satellite decoder cards is “contrary to the freedom to provide services”.
2 Enterprise wins Brulines case against Fair Pint founder (24 November)
A company owned by Fair Pint founder Karl Harrison has been ordered by the High Court to pay Enterprise Inns an initial £65,000 in costs after it lost a legal battle with the pubco over use of the Brulines flow-monitoring system.
3 Britvic launches Glitter Berry (4 September)
Britvic has launched a limited-edition variant, J20 Glitter Berry, in an effort to boost sales over the festive season. J2O Glitter Berry is a combination of red grape, cherry and a hint of spice with edible gold glitter that sparkles once the bottle is shaken.
4 Fair Pint founder Dodds faces eviction (18 September)
A founding member of Fair Pint, Mark Dodds is to be evicted from his pub after falling behind on a repayment scheme. Dodds, lessee at the Sun & Doves in Camberwell, south London, was involved in a dispute with Scottish & Newcastle Pub Company (S&NPC) over a proposed rent increase at the pub dating back to September 2005.
5 RBS sells 918 pubs to Heineken (1 December)
Royal Bank of Scotland (RBS) has sold 918 freehold pubs, the portfolio known as the Galaxy estate, to S&NPC, a subsidiary of Heineken, for £422m, in the largest deal in the tenanted pub sector for eight years.
6 Government eyes alternative pubco reform (6 October)
Pubcos have been told to deliver meaningful reform or the Government could support a Private Members’ Bill that calls for a mandatory free-of-tie option and an open-market rent review.
7 Beer duty up again (22 March)
The pub trade has been dealt another devastating blow — with the price of a pint set to rise another 10p — after the Chancellor stuck to plans to increase duty by 7.2%. The rise in duty is the third price increase of the year following January’s VAT hike and brewery rises in February.
8 Punch lessee case goes to full trial (27 September)
George Scott, licensee at the Eastcote Arms in Towcester, Northamptonshire, is fighting a case for forfeiture against Punch over a sum of money for unpaid rent and beer sales.
9 Orchid under threat of bank takeover (9 October)
The Orchid Group, the 300-strong managed chain, is under threat of being taken over by its banks. The group admitted it is likely to breach the covenants on the terms of its bank loans, forcing it into discussions with its main lender — Lloyds Banking Group.
10 Enterprise ‘tenants being misled in lease disputes’ (30 November)
Enterprise has hit out at organisations and individuals who, it claimed, are giving misleading advice to tenants over lease disputes. This comes after the pubco secured its second High Court victory in as many weeks over a tenant on a tie-related issue.
