Host fined for fire breach

A Berkshire licensee has been forced to pay nearly £8,000 for breaching strict new fire safety regulations.

Paul Dailey is among the first licensees to be prosecuted under the Fire Safety Regulatory Reform Order. These went live last October and make businesses responsible for fire safety.

Dailey, of the George and Dragon in Church Road, Swallowfield, pleaded guilty to 10 charges of breaching the order at Reading Magistrates. Breaches included:

n No fire risk assessment

n No fire protection for fire escape routes

n No fire alarm system

n Obstructed fire escape

n No fire drill training for staff

n Emergency lighting systems not working

Dailey was fined £4,000 and ordered to pay £3,984 costs. Magistrates heard the breaches presented a serious and life-threatening risk to staff and the public.

The charges were brought after a routine inspection

by fire safety officers in

May 2007.

Berkshire's fire safety technical support officer David Walden said: "We are very pleased that the courts have acknowledged the serious nature of this case."