'Ailing village pubs encouraged to diversify and seek grants to survive'

Pubs in villages across England and Wales are being encouraged to apply for grants as community meeting places and other local facilities to help them to fight the threat of closure. The initiative has been authorised by government ministers and local authority chiefs as a cash lifeline to keep open pubs as vital community amenities - The Times​

Britain is to become the only European country that allows motorists to have at least one alcoholic drink and still be legally fit to drive. The government has changed its mind about reducing the limit from 80 to 50 millilitres of blood, despite evidence that a lower limit would save 65 drivers a year - The Times​

Increasing the price of alcohol will do little to curb binge-drinking and hit the poorest sections of society the hardest, according to a new study. A report by the Centre for Economics and Business Research, an independent think-tank, undermines claims that making alcohol more expensive will alter consumption - The Guardian​

The Blacksmith's Arms at Rothwell, in the Lincolnshire Wolds, has gone into school dinners as a sideline. The profits are only a few thousand pounds a year, but for Ian Quill, the owner, the extra income is a lifeline and helps to keep the pub open - The Times​

When a punter asked to be taken 740 miles to the Munich beer festival, cabbie Mick Hogan thought he was joking. But the desperate man - called Dave and in his 30s - explained he had missed his flight to a friend's stag do at the Oktoberfest and there were no more available. Mick, 54, checked the mileage from Portsmouth, Hants, using his satnav and told Dave it would cost £1,700, plus £250 for the Channel Tunnel and a hotel for the night. Dave agreed to the £1,950 fare, showing him a wallet stuffed with cash - The Mirror​

The rate of pub closures is accelerating, according to the Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers. It said that in 2007 there was a net loss of about 1,400 pubs, while the figure for this year is expected to reach more than 2,000 - The Times​

A pub in north Suffolk narrowly escaped disaster yesterday as heavy rain flooded the area, customers enjoying their Sunday lunch were forced to down their knives and forks and help staff fill sand bags to prevent the water from washing through the pub - East Anglian Daily Times​