What the papers say - July 13

The government was scrambling to keep alive plans to liberalise the country's casino laws yesterday. James Purnell, culture secretary, was writing to the local authorities awarded licences for 16 smaller-sized casinos to offer reassurance they would go ahead despite Gordon Brown's decision to all but kill off plans for a Manchester-based super-casino - The Financial Times​

A quarter of the secondary school timetable will be freed from teaching traditional subjects, in one of the biggest reforms of the curriculum in a generation. As part of the Science curriculum, Pupils will learn about the importance of healthy eating and exercise and "the effects of drugs such as alcohol, tobacco and cannabis on mental and physical health" - The Times​

A loaf is set to go up by 5p after wheat crops were devastated by rain and floods, which have already pushed up the cost of potatoes and mushy peas - Daily Mirror​

Scottish & Newcastle, Britain's largest brewer, is planning to take a bigger slice of the over-ice cider market by introducing Upcider Pear, a pear-based drink produced by Hartwall, its Finnish subsidiary - The Times​

Shares in C&C fell sharply in early trade on Friday after the maker of Magners cider added its voice to a growing chorus of gloom in the sector by warning of a fall in first-half operating profit. The Irish drinks group said poor weather in June and July, along with "very heavy" competition, was set to lead to a weak second quarter. It added that steeper marketing costs in the first half, costs related to capacity expansion and the impact of sales of stock ahead of a price increase, were set to erode profits - The Financial Times, The Times​

Marston's, the Midlands brewer and pub operator, has acquired Ringwood Brewery in Hampshire, the purveyor of Old Thumper and Ringwood Best Bitter, together with seven pubs, for £19.2 million - The Times​

Cadbury Schweppes said that it had acquired the Southeast-Atlantic Beverage Corp (Seabev), the second-largest independent bottler in the US, from private shareholders for an undisclosed sum - The Times​