Breweries in UK at a 70 year high

The Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) says there are now 1,000 breweries in the UK - the highest figure for 70 years.

Camra said 158 new breweries had opened in the past year alone, the highest number ever recorded by the lobby group's annual Good Beer Guide.

The organisation said the growth rate had quickened over the past 10 years and that the number had doubled in that time, with one brewery for every 50 pubs.

Camra called the figure "astonishing".

The increase has come against a backdrop of continuing pub closures. Almost 10,000 pubs have closed in the past decade.