Call to arms
Former Home Secretary David Blunkett, a current Home Office minister and the Deputy Chief Commissioner of the Metropolitan Police were among the...
Archives for November 23, 2006
Licensing: they got it right
The law of unintended consequences tends to rule the world. Human nature rarely responds to the promptings of politician and, far too often, the...
Blunkett: media had a hand in licensing
Former Home Secretary David Blunkett came close to admitting last week that the early stages of drawing up the Licensing Act had been influenced by...
A rocky road for licensees
Some licensees claim that the new licensing regime is often a double-edged sword and can seem like a minefield for inexperienced pub operatorsGraham...
THE AGENTS
Barry Aldred Associate Director, Davey & Co The pub sales market has continued to experience a sustained boom throughout 2006 and the...
MyShout
Why, oh why, do we men still have to wear black ties? asks Tony Jennings A few weeks ago I found myself watching the annual awards ceremony of...
The Ashes defence starts now
The wait is finally over. The Ashes series between England and Australia is here. Out in Australia, Andrew "Freddie" Flintoff leads his band of men...
Business as usual for City investors
The consensus among analysts is that the small earthquake in licensing law has not caused any seismic waves in the City. Martyn Cornell reports For...
Licensing: one year on
In an eight-page special, the MA takes an in-depth look at the impact of the Licensing Act on its first birthday. Jo Grobel leads off with the...
Let pubs host poker
The British Beer & Pub Association is to seek a small-stakes exemption for pubs The British Beer & Pub Asso-ciation (BBPA) is to ask...
Political haste cost dearly
Legal experts say reform has been a disaster, largely because the Government tried to create a one-size-fits-all regimePeter Coulson, morning...
Licensing@aol.com
Signs outside pub QMost of my town's traders put out advertising signs on the pavement or roadway, but I have been told that it is illegal for me to...
Peace and goodwill at Xmas
They call Christmas the season of goodwill, but readers of MA's Snifter page may be forgiven for thinking that there's not much of it about in south...
NewsDigest
A new report calls for raising the age for buying cigarettes in Scotland from 16 to 18. It also calls for the licensing of cigarette sales north of...
Government plans a red-tape cutback
Government is shortly to release a plan to cut red tape in licensing applications, licensing minister Shaun Woodward has revealed. In an interview to...
Binge-drink ads take a new tack
Licensees are targeting customers about the dangers of excessive drinking ¬with a warning about man-boobs and penis shrinkage.A woman's voice is...
The golden age
While traditional white and dark rums have struggled in recent years in a depressed spirits market, golden rum is a great success story. The trend...
Let pubs host poker says trade body
The British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) is to ask Government to let pubs host small-stakes poker games.
Brewers hit in a tough marketplace
Two major brewers, Carlsberg and Coors, have filed accounts at Companies House that show how tough the UK beer market is. Both major brewers have...
Brewer Thwaites announces good results
Brewer Daniel Thwaites has announced good results for the last six months. It said its recent investment had been rewarded and the introduction of...
Look beyond media hype
How was it for you? Over the next four pages, Ewan Turney wraps up our report with a look at the views of different sectors of the trade, starting...
Exclusive research: drinkers are not spending more money in pubs
EXCLUSIVE RESEARCH for The Publican has blown a hole in the argument that later opening would result in people drinking more in pubs into the early...
Young's to lease half of tenanted pubs
Young's is to convert half its tenanted estate to lease over the next two to three years. The move should see at least 20 pubs move to 20-year...
Raising their game
As new legislation introduces higher stakes and prizes on gaming machines, Jo Grobel meets some key players The recent, long-awaited increase in...
Do It Right Kiely venture goes under
Another company owned by Paul Kiely, the founder of discredited pub company Provence, has gone into administration, the Morning Advertiser has...
Poll reveals longer hours are popular
A total of 30% of UK consumers are making use of flexible opening hours a year after reform was introduced, an exclusive poll for the Morning...
Greene King in costs battle
Greene King is taking four residents to the High Court to retrieve costs in a bid to protect community pubs across the country. The Suffolk brewer...
DCMS: we will sort out the Act
Many of the remaining concerns about the new licensing regime will be addressed shortly, the Department of Culture, Media and Sport's (DCMS) has...
Licences still not issued one year later
Licensing in local authorities is often describ-ed as "the Cinderella subject" - not a mainstream activity and, therefore, not always a priority when...
Boom in cider hits beer sales
The dramatic resurgence of the cider market has helped accelerate a further decline in pub beer sales over the past 12 months, according to market...
Pub has vision to outsmart Smartbox
One disgruntled Smartbox customer has decided to take the company to the small claims court to recoup the £1,800 he says he is owed. Bill Ganley, of...
Marching to success
Former army chef Chris Wittwer tells Ewan Turney how he and wife Alison used their bright ideas to increase sales by almost £100,000 at the Royal...
Fresh Air, Fresh Thinking: Preparing for the ban
As if their work wasn't tricky enough, the life of a business relationship manager (BRM) has got that little bit tougher with the impending smoking...
We must act and act now
Beer producers, pub owners, pub operators; it no longer matters on which side of this £28bn industry you sit, we are all under attack. The issue at...
Profit from a 250k face-lift
Union Pub Company (UPC), Wolves' tenanted arm, is looking for the right licensee for a Rotherham, South Yorkshire, pub undergoing a £250,000 revamp....
A mixed bag
Reform may have caused its fair share of problems in the industry but it has not led to the end of the world as we know it, according to trade...
Doomsday predictions fade
The new regime does not provide the freedom or profit many pubs hoped for, but it has not been all doom and gloom, explains Graeme Cushion a partner...
Rum runners
The CrownThinking of grog conjures images of salty sea dogs pouring rum and water down their necks in rough taverns after a hard day's pirating....
Hoggie's Down Under Diary
In the first of a regular series, England cricket hero Matthew Hoggard gives his view on cricket, beer and life. This week he reports from Down...
Welsh ban preparation time 'very short'
Licensees in Wales will have less than 10 weeks to prepare for the smoking ban once the final guidelines are released. The Welsh Assembly has said it...
PickoftheWeek
The Knave of Hearts Bloxwic h West Midlands Price: £50,000 Tenure: Leasehold Rent: £30,000 Review: Five-yearly, with the next review due in 2011...
LETTERs
Targeting of trade is unfair I write in response to the MA's front page article of 16 November, Revenue slammed over swoop tactics. Now let's apply...
St Austell freehold quartet up for sale
St Austell Brewery is selling four freehold pubs. The Cornish brewer is offloading four outlets from its 166-strong pub estate. The freeholds are...
Right on Kew
The Inn at Kew Gardens has had such a turnaround of fortunes - not least due to a £1m makeover - that it reached the finals in a gastro competition....
Pubs hit by stub-out should pay cheaper rent says Payne
Pub companies are being urged to consider rent reductions for licensees whose pubs are hit worst by next year's smoking ban. Federation of Licensed...
Plummeting profits reported by big two
Two major UK brewers have filed accounts at Companies House that indicate how difficult the UK beer business has become. Both Carlsberg UK and Coors...
The GUV'NOR Dennis Griffiths
The licensee of the Miners Rest in Barnsley looks back on the FLVA conference The 2006 FLVA (Federation of Licensed Victuallers Associations)...
All-round entertainment
Jo Grobel kicks off our new technology series with a look at how one licensee is making more money after investing in an entertainment system What...
Has the paper pile paid off?
The last 12 months haven't been easy for the councils at the front line of licensing but there is a sense that the hard work has paid off. In an...
Less than 600 pubs have 24-hour licences, says DCMS
Less than 600 pubs across the country have 24-hour licences, says a new survey from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). On the eve of...
What did the Beer Orders achieve?
I wonder if, with the benefit of hindsight, Lord Young would still be "minded" to accept the recommendations of the Monopolies and Mergers...
Pernod Ricard's dark spirit push
Pernod Ricard is beefing up its presence in the key dark spirits markets with changes to its portfolio in rum, whisky and cognac. Within the Havana...
BarTalk
Would you host poker at your pub if you could? John Ullman Red Lion Coleshill Buckinghamshire Yes we would. We are a sports pub, with darts teams,...
Taste test
THIS WEEK: Chalky's Bite A new brew from Sharp's Brewery in Cornwall that has been developed with celebrity chef Rick Stein as an ideal beer to...
Pubwatch ban contested by Liberty
Pressure group Liberty has defended its decision to back the case of a man who is trying to fight his pubwatch ban by claiming it breached his human...