The average cost of a pint of beer is cheaper in Suffolk than it is in Norfolk, according to a new pub guide.

According to the new edition of the Good Pub Guide, a pint of beer in Norfolk is 5p more expensive than it is in Suffolk.

The average pint in Suffolk is £3.61 compared to Norfolk where the average cost of a pint is £3.66.

Both counties, which have a rich pubs and brewing heritage, are in the 'Average priced-beer' category of the new book which found that the average pint of beer is now £3.69.

It also found that the price of beer across the UK differs by more than £1 a pint.

Shropshire and Herefordshire were found to have the cheapest drinks, at £3.37 a pint, compared with £4.44 in London, the most expensive area for pub-goers.

Martin Ward, vice chairman of the Norfolk branch of the Campaign for Real Ale (CAMRA) joked that 'Suffolk people are stingier' which could explain the price difference.

But on a serious note, he admitted he did not have an answer for why there was a difference in the average price of a pint across the Norfolk/Suffolk border.

He said: 'I really don't know why that is.'

Mr Ward said it could be as a result of a number of variables, including 'who owns the pub' and how regularly they got their beer in from the brewery or the supplier.

He said: 'Like anything if you buy in bulk you will get a little bit of a discount and if you buy regularly you will get that as well.'

Nick De'Ath, who runs a number of pubs in the Norwich, including The Trafford and The Unthank Arms, said he felt the study was 'a waste of someone's time'.

Mr De'Ath said you could go to 50 pubs in Norfolk and the same in Suffolk and find different prices in all of them.

Fiona Stapley, editor of the Guide, said pubs had faced rising costs over the past year - including increased business rates and rents, higher staff wages and more expensive raw materials.

She added: 'We should all be supporting our local pub, because how boring would high streets be with just coffee shops?'

The Guide, now its 37th edition, is published by Ebury Press, featuring more than 5,000 pubs following pub-goers' recommendations, backed up by editor inspections.