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Longshot, the former owners of the Groucho Club and London’s first 24-hour restaurant, have raised £30m to buy pubs, bars, restaurants and hotels. M&C Report

Garry Shewan, assistant chief constable of Greater Manchester police has warned that cheap supermarket alcohol and 24-hour drinking is stretching police resources. The Sun

Celebrity chef, Marco Pierre White, has announced that he is to expand his restaurant business with the launch of three new units in the North West of England. The report on caterersearch.com said that he “will launch two restaurants and an events venue in Lancashire, in January 2010″.

JD Wetherspoon has bought five pubs from Punch Taverns. The freehold pubs are expected to receive £4m worth of investment before reopening in January 2010. thepublican.com

Hotel revenue per available room rose by 1.5% in London in the week ending 24 October 2009. The report by hospitality research company STR Global, also revealed that occupancy grew by 3.7 percentage points, to 86.1% Caterersearch.com

Pubs have two years to remove cigarette vending machines from their trading areas, as the government’s Health Bill announced that they will be banned from October 2011. However, pubs will still be allowed to sell cigarettes over the bar. thepublican.com

Barracuda, Caffe Nero and Fuller’s, pub and restaurant customers will soon be able to pay with Oyster-style credit or debit cards, which operate without the need for pin numbers.

New Year’s Eve revellers are set to get an extra six hours of reduced VAT drinking. Treasury minister Stephen Timms announced that the rate which rises back to its normal 17.5% at midnight on 31 December will remain at 15% for pubs, restaurants and clubs until 6am on New Year’s Day. BBC News

Wagamama is to open six new sites in 2010. M&C Report

The former Punch Taverns head Deborah Kemp has been appointed as chief operating officer at the De Vere Group.

The Campaign for Real Ale has begun a campaign to re-open seven Bristol pubs. Operating with the motto ‘Love a Local Pub’, the Bristol and District branch of CAMRA has been contacting breweries, pub chains and operators in a bid to get the pubs re-opened. morningadvertiser.co.uk

Scottish & Newcastle UK has announced that it will print alcohol unit information on all its beer glasses with the aim of promoting responsible drinking. The initiative will start this month with the alcohol unit figures to be included on Foster’s branded glasses.

Speaking at the M&C Report’s Restaurant Conference 2009, Waitrose announced ambition to open 300 foodservice outlets within the next decade.

According to a report on caterersearch.com, the American Embassy in London is poised to become a new luxury hotel, following an agreement by a Qatari real estate investment company to buy the building. While Qatari Diar has not announced what it intends to do with the property in Grosvenor Square, it is thought that it will be turned into a hotel and apartments.

According to the British Retail Consortium (BRC), consumer confidence is at its highest level for more than a year. The BRC’s consumer confidence index, put together with market researchers Nielsen, shows a 10-point gain, versus the all-time low reported in April of this year. thepublican.com

London hotel occupancy levels for September rose compared to levels experienced last year. According to figures released by PKF Hotel Consultancy Services, hoteliers enjoyed 85.1% occupancy, 3% higher than in September 2008. caterersearch.com

Costa Coffee has opened its 1,000th store in the UK. The operator reached the landmark last week with the opening of a site at St David’s Shopping Centre in Cardiff. M&C Report

According to a report in the Irish Independent, more than 1,500 pubs, hotels and restaurants have gone to the wall in the country over the past five years.

Heineken has bought the 421-strong Globe Pub Company from receivership for a reported £180m to salvage a beer supply and management contract. Daily Telegraph

Red Carnation Hotels has launched a new online marketing initiative offering exclusive deals to its Twitter and Facebook followers. The initiative, known as “Tweekends”, will, each week, offer limited one-off fixed rates for an unnamed property within its London collection. caterersearch.com

And finally…BT is to reopen its revolving restaurant at the iconic BT Tower in London. According to a report in The Sunday Times, the group has started a search for a top chef for the site

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