I once read a newspaper article that suggested we should learn one interesting new fact every day.
The interesting new fact I learned that day was that we should learn one interesting new fact every day.
I’ve since tried to learn one interesting new fact every day and felt all the better for it… until last week…
Although I like the occasional drink (“A foaming pint of Old Occasional, please Landlord!”) I’m not ‘a big drinker’.
Am I a social drinker? Well, I don’t like drinking alone, so I suppose that makes me a ‘sociable’ drinker – though I never touch the stuff when I’m driving.
For someone who’s supposed to have his finger on the pulse, I’m ashamed to admit I was unaware of the ‘interesting fact’ that, here in Wales, for some time we’ve been paying more for our alcohol than people do in England!
If you weren’t aware of this, chalk it up as the interesting fact you’ve learned today.
I think we pay around 50p a litre more for alcohol here in Wales, which explains why so many people who like a glass or two of vino with a meal or enjoy a whisky nightcap to help them nod off in front of Newsnight, regularly head over the border to purchase their favourite tipple.
It doesn’t require the brains of Lloyd George to work out that this is taking money out of the tills of Welsh businesses – particularly at this time of year when people tend to spend a little more on celebratory drinks like sparkling wine and the odd bottle of champagne.
I appreciate it’s not so convenient for residents of west Wales, but I know people living along the M4 corridor regularly head over the Prince Of Wales Bridge to visit supermarkets in places like Portishead – and  despite the price of petrol, they’re still quids in.
However, when they re-enter Wales with a case of wine in the boot, they have to endure the dreaded Brynglas Tunnels bottleneck in Newport, which, as we know, could have been sorted, if…
Ah! But that’s a subject for another article…
In the meantime, mine’s a Babycham