As a think tank, we are supposed to be officially non-partisan. Of course, if you look at our output, you will see opinions - and while some may be partisan - all of them remain as the authors' views and not the think tank as a whole.

However, we’re pretty sure that most people - no matter their political persuasion - like beer, and as a student think tank, we think we can get some leeway from being officially non-partisan towards having a very pro-partisan view on beer.

Please note, this excludes current civil service placement students who mustn’t hold or voice any opinions on beer and boozing (sorry chaps, the employ of his majesty carries great impartiality).

But for those who can voice their opinions without getting fired, we would like to draw your attention to this chart:

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The affordability of a pint has fallen a fair bit in recent years. We will provide no commentary on this downturn's political or economic roots (though you are more than welcome to theorise). All we care for is beer becoming more pricey for the average Joe.

What’s more devastating is that going out on the lash is materially more expensive in the Yorkshire & Humber than the rest of the country. The think tanks' self-selected select committee of beer barons was quite distraught by this result.

Initially, we were quite sceptical. We rerevised the numbers, made sure we were using the correct base years, accounting for regional differences etc.

Still nothing. In fact, when one adds London to this chart, we see that pints there are also more affordable than in God’s own country of Yorkshire.

We’re scientists in search of an answer, and we can't expect the ONS to do all the work.

Enter, the Leeds Pint Index (LPI).

In what is purely an effort to provide high-quality data and documentation on pint prices in Leeds, the Leeds Policy Institute (LPI) is introducing its very own Leeds Pint Index (LPI).

Data ‘collection’ will occur on the last Friday of each month with the location being chosen ad-hoc and announced in the following WhatsApp channel.

To reduce errors in data collection that may occur later in the sampling process, we want those partaking in the Leeds Pint Index to download Untappd, where one can rate and make posts (with photos) of the pint they had just purchased. 

To make our average pricing accurate, we strongly recommend that participants maximise the variety of alcoholic beverages consumed. Hence, the index is not limited to Ale, Lager, APAs, IPAs, Pilsners, and Stouts. We welcome all sorts of drinks (including non-alcoholic) as this will lead to freer spirits. 

The beer barons of Leeds Policy Institute will poach fit candidates whose responsibility will be the scouting of drink menus of local pubs such that we have good documentation as to what beverages must be consumed (and which ones have been missed).

On the night of data collection, the party will enjoy the honour and glory associated with providing the people of Leeds with the data they need to make rationally informed boozing decisions. 

After a full recovery, a selected individual will comb through the array of Untappd posts to construct an index of the pint prices for that month. 

The first iteration of this index will be developed by the Head of Data Analysis, afterwards, the responsibility will rotate between those who volunteer. 

Once constructed, this individual will have the heavy task of writing an article detailing the methodology and results. Bring lots of wit, puns, and snark. We would like for the top Untappd posts (try your best to remember posting) to make it into the final article debut and we expect to see gossip from the evening.

Mentions of gossip should be kept civil and amicable. You may call out a person for choosing not to get another round despite being absolutely loaded - you know who you are - but we recommend refraining from trying to ruin people's careers, there’s always room for positive mentions.

The Leeds Pint Index would also like to run joint society and special events (Real Ale we’re looking at you) including but not limited to:

• A Newcastle-based LPI for the British Conference of Undergraduate Research

• Otley-Run themed LPI (it may be a good idea to just do this one once)

• And a very special Kirkstall Brewery-themed index to support our local brew

Any ideas are always welcome and if you are a society looking to collaborate, please contact me or our Head of Media and Communications, Donatella Petrucci.

So bring yourselves, and your mates, and make sure to download Untappd to log your pints (they don’t fund us so don’t worry). If you say something controversial or embarrassing, people might forget, or it may just end up in print…