Minimum alcohol price u-turn welcome

News that the government is likely to drop plans for a minimum unit price is a welcome move - despite the predictable outcry from the medicine industry. 

There is little evidence that problem drinkers would be put off - and the only benficiaries would be the supermarkets whose profit margins would rise.  As Philip Johnson says in the Telegraph "Britain’s problem with alcohol is less a function of price than of culture".  And minimum pricing does nothing to fix that.

How the Telegraph reports the Ritz tax dodging allegations

The Telegraph is also owned by the elusive Barclay brothers...

Two departures show how far we've come

Two sad departures today that reinforce the march of time.

Firstly the news that the BBC's Ceefax is no more - due to the final switch from analogue to digital TV.  Ceefax was a technical wonder of the 1970s - an era of teleprinter and punched card.  It survived all the way into the internet age - teaching web editors how to keep copy short and to the point.

The other sad loss is of Flight Lieutenant William Walker - the last of the few.  As is usual on these occasions the Telegraph provides an excellent obituary.

His poem 'Our wall' adorns the memorial to the 2,937 aircrew who died during the Battle of Britain - helping to defeat tyranny and ensuring that innovations like Ceefax would be put to peaceful use in future years.

And in other news....

As an occasional cricket fan I was saddened to hear of the death at just 52 of Graham Dilley.

Dilley was integral in that amazing summer comeback by England in 1981 against the Aussies and as is usual on these occasions the Telegraph's obituary does the honours.

Jonathan Calder reckons the next Ashes series was his finest hour.