THE PSYCHOLOGIST : Beer deregulation in Britain

Beer deregulation in Britain

Schooners (15 oz. in the old money) are mostly drunk in Sydney rather than in Australia generally. I have sunk a schooner or two there myself in the past. People who drank smaller measures tended to be suspected of homosexuality at the time

The traditional cry of ‘Mine’s a pint’ could become ‘Mine’s a schooner’. Under government proposals it will soon be possible to order a new range of measures of alcohol in licensed premises.

One of which would be the Australian schooner measure – which is the equivalent of two-thirds of a pint, or 400ml.

Currently there are strict rules which dictate the size of drinks on offer. For example, a beer can only be served in halves or pints, although a little-known ‘third’ does also exist.

But the Government has decided to rip up the traditional system in a move designed to discourage binge-drinking. And in an added plus for these austere times, the proposals should also slash the price of a round of drinks, as the amount of alcohol per round falls.

The rules will also apply to cider and lager and represents a radical change since the ‘pint’ was introduced by an Act of Parliament in 1698.

David Willetts, Science Minister, said: ‘This is exactly the sort of unnecessary red tape the government wants to remove. ‘We have listened to consumers and businesses. They have called for fixed quantities to be kept – but with greater flexibility. That is what this change will deliver.’

SOURCE

1 comment:

arJanuary 6, 2011 at 5:06 PM
A pint should be 20oz, so 2/3 of a pint would be around 13oz - which is not a schooner. Some miserable local pubs tried introducing "schmiddies" - a vile description for a blatant drinker rip-off that seems to have died a deserved death. On the ludicrous basis that consumer demand warranted a smaller glass, 12oz tumblers better suited for fruit smoothies were foisted on drinkers at certain venues (usually after 6PM) for no commensurate change in price.

The smallest beer glass is a pony - 7oz, close enough to a third of a pint.
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The essence of conservatism is caution. The essence of Leftism is anger

This blog is written solely by John Ray, who has a Ph.D. degree in psychology and 200+ papers published in the academic journals of the social sciences. It does occasionally comment on issues in psychology but is mainly aimed at giving a conservative psychologist's view on a broad range of topics. There are very few conservative psychologists.

The blog originated in Australia and many (but not most) posts discuss Australian matters. Australians have an unusually good awareness of events outside their own country. Australian newspapers feature news from Britain and the USA not as an afterthought but as a major part of their coverage. So Australians do tend to have a truly Western heart, which is the reason behind the old name for this blog. So events in Australia, Britain and the USA all feature frequently here, plus occasional coverage of other places, particularly Israel.

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