Legal challenge to Scottish smoking ban
The move to ban smoking in public places could face a legal challenge from the Scottish Licensed Trade Association, which represents pubs in Scotland. The association has asked lawyers to investigate whether it can appeal against the decision of the Scottish Executive last week. – The Times, 9 July
Fresh takeover bid for Jurys Doyle hotel group
Precinct, the private consortium which has made two unsuccessful attempts to take over Jurys Doyle, will make a fresh approach to the board of the hotel company next week. The level of the offer has not yet been decided, but market sources said any offer would have to be pitched at a premium to the €16.25-per-share bid made last month if it is to attract the Doyle and Beatty families, who control more than 30% of the shares. – Irish Independent, 9 July
Copthorne preferred operator for new Sheffield hotel
Work on a luxury new hotel at Sheffield United's football ground could begin before the end of the year if plans for a nine-storey, 150-bedroom hotel get the go-ahead. Millennium Copthorne are believed to be the club's preferred operator. – Yorkshire Post, 9 July
Owners of Jarvis Hotels could make £30m profit from sale
Lioncourt Capital, the Irish investment vehicle, could make a £30m profit in just 18 months from the sale of Jarvis Hotels, the British hotel group it has put on the market. Lioncourt bought the chain, which runs about 60 hotels, for £229m a year-and-a-half ago. Last January it sold one of the hotels, the Ramada Plaza Regents Park, for £60m. It has now hired IBI Corporate Finance to advise it on the sale of the remaining hotels which could go for about £200m. – Irish Independent, 9 July
W&D raise money for expansion
Wolverhampton & Dudley Breweries proposed a major debt refinancing by means of a securitisation of between £530m and £805m, backed by part of its pub estate, as part of its expansion plans. – The Times, 9 July
200,000 evacuated after Birmingham security scare
More than 20,000 people were evacuated from large parts of Birmingham city centre’s entertainment heartland. A West Midlands Police spokesman said that people were being asked to leave the centre of England’s second-largest city, in particular the area around Broad Street where the city’s restaurants, pubs and hotels are located, as a “precautionary measure” in response to intelligence the force had received.- Sunday Herald, 10 July
London visitors show solidarity in wake of bombs
Fears of a tourism boycott of London in the wake of last week’s bombings receded this weekend as airline and hotel chains said visitors were showing incredible solidarity with the capital. Ian Carter, chief executive of Hilton International, said many customers had not cancelled bookings and in some cases have called hotels to confirm they are still coming. – Mail on Sunday, 10 July
Regent Inns speed up bid for Urbium
Walkabout pub group Regent Inns is believed to be preparing to launch a revised £93m-plus bid this week for rival bar operator Urbium, owner of Tiger Tiger and a string of other central London venues. Regent’s chief executive, Bob Ivell, had been set a deadline of 21 July to make an offer or walk away, but it is understood he has decided to push ahead and could make a move in the next few days. – Sunday Times, 10 July
Bid for Glasgow pubs to build smoking verandahs fails
A flood of applications from pubs and bars to build balconies and verandas to get round Scotland’s smoking ban are likely to be turned down. New guidelines published by Glasgow City Council, Scotland's biggest local authority, have said that permission for smoking balconies is unlikely to be given the nod because of the risk of noise to neighbours and potential damage to listed buildings. – Scotland on Sunday, 10 July