Eric Pickles ‘calls time' on subsidised Whitehall pub

Communities secretary Eric Pickles has called time on a subsidised pub for MPs because the public "don't want to see politicians guzzle cheap beer at their expense".

He made the comments just days after Falkirk MP Eric Joyce was arrested by police following an alleged brawl at a popular bar within Parliament, reported the Independent.

Pickles told Tory party activists at their spring conference in London that he was going to close a bar selling cheap alcohol in the Department for Communities and Local Government's London headquarters.

In his speech, he said: "Backed up by secret subsidies, it charges just £1.90 for a small bottle of Chardonnay. That's what I call minimum pricing.

"Now we're the department in charge of supporting community pubs. But there are eight licensed premises within 30 seconds of our front door, so why do we need a government pub?"