'Ear-bite pub lout jailed'

A thug who bit off a stranger's ear after being refused a drink in a pub where he was banned was jailed for 20 months. Joiner Ryan Buchanan, 30, flew into a rage and attacked Richard Heaney in Perth's Royal Bar. Mr Heaney's discarded ear was found on the floor by cops after the attack in February, the town's sheriff court heard vesterday. He needed 20 stitches - The Scottish Sun ​

Moscow is to ban sales of spirits and other strong alcohol at night and in the early hours of the morning in an attempt to wean Russia off one of its biggest health problems, according to reports. According to a decree signed by Moscow Mayor Yuri Luzhkov, shops in the Russian capital will no longer be able to sell drinks containing more than 15 per cent alcohol between 10:00 pm and 10:00 am - Daily Telegraph​

Parish councils, traditionally responsible for attending to the small, but important details of local communities, should be given radical new powers to approve developments in their area, campaigners say. Lord Taylor of Goss Moor, the Lib Dem peer, has issued a paper calling on reform of the local government to begin as soon as possible. He said parish councils should be offered a small amount of money from central Government to maintain local services in their area through innovative measures. For example taxis driven by volunteers to replace the bus service or a post office branch in the local pub - Daily Telegraph​