Over here in the UK, 24 hour pubs and bars was a new introduction about a decade or so ago.  And shops selling alcohol are often open til fairly late into the night, especially the corner shop types.<p>It&#x27;s variable though, so some pubs still close around 11pm, and some don&#x27;t.<p>The jury is out about whether this decision was a good thing.  On the one hand, there are some articles and studies saying the amount of alcohol drunk has gone down because of it, and on the other hand, others saying that people are drinking more because of it.