Its August so of course a Westminster Council draft policy on licensing in the West End of London which was posted in June and for which consultation closes shortly has made the headlines.
To save those who have other matters in August I have read both documents consisting of 150 and 39 pages respectively.
Most of it is simply repeating good practice but there are a couple of bits that are seeking to change quite fundamentally how pubs work.
In the 150 page document its suggested that since most issues in pubs occur after 10pm it would be better if they shut by or before then. Pub hours vary a lot by location and use but this seems odd for an area like Soho with a flourishing nightlife.
Actually the rest of the document carries on as if closing time is 11pm and if a pub wants to stay open after that it’ll need a late night licence (the same as now)
In the 39 page document the following passage can be found
Examples may include: • Fixed seating layouts. • Minimum seating requirements. • Waiter or waitress service. • Restrictions on customers consuming alcohol while standing.
Draft Good Operator Guidance.pdf
Its this that has caught the headlines since it seems to imply that vertical drinking, standing at the bar, queuing at the bar(stop it) are to be discouraged if not designed out.
Personally after many demonstrations the knees arent what they were and I prefer to sit in a pub. However a chat standing up while at the bar or on the way to the toilet is all part of pub life.
The ideology behind all this is that pubs will be better if they have fewer customers. They will also go out of business quicker.
Westminster Council is controlled by the Tories. Perhaps Kemi Badenoch who this week proclaimed pubs as one of the engines of economic growth could have a word…
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