The (London) Times, 13 March 2000, previewed a Government white paper
proposing drastic changes in legislation for English pubs.  Changes include
opportunity for pubs to be open 24 hours a day (in practice, probably
staggered closing hours), licensing by local authorities and not by
magistrates, and personal licenses for pub landlords rather than licenses
for the premises.  The increased hours for pubs is likely to be effective
by summer 2001.