Six cheers, please, one for each of the Bass Tavern pubs in York which have just joined the York Tourism Bureau.

Signing up were the Old White Swan, the Northern Wall, the Cross Keys, the Black Swan, the Punchbowl and the Nag's Head.

It was cause for celebration for the bureau's chief executive Gillian Cruddas who, with assistant manager Cath Henderson, proved she could handle her drinks all right at the Old White Swan, Goodramgate. She can now boast that of the 291 members, 14 are pubs.

And with the advent next month of ECOFIN, the meeting of finance ministers from 15 member countries in the European Union in York, it could not have happened at a better time.

It's not just that some of these pubs will be staging special ECOFIN events, but that the message they convey of youth and enjoyment is one that the First Stop York marketing campaign has been hammering home for ages.

First Stop York is a concerted effort by the bureau, the City of York Council, the York and North Yorkshire Chamber of Commerce to lure visitors to the ancient English capital and encourage them to stay longer. Mrs Cruddas said: "The latest First Stop York research shows that the perception of York held by many young people outside the region is of a quaint historic city with little to do in the evening.

"It is important that we work closely with pubs, theatres and other places of interest to address this misconception.

"It's very encouraging when a group like Bass Taverns are keen to support the work of the tourism bureau and can appreciate the benefits to be gained by increased resources for the city's tourism market."

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