Wetherspoons fined for licensing breach

Managed pub giant JD Wetherspoon has been fined for breaching licensing laws at a pub in North London.

At court yesterday magistrates fined the company £3,300 and ordered it to pay £3,800 for selling alcohol without a designated premises supervisor (DPS) in place the Moon and Sixpence in Harrow.

Company chiefs had admitted a DPS had not been in place for a month and blamed it on an administrative error.

The situation was uncovered when police requested CCTV from the pub and asked to speak to the licensee.

A spokesman for Wetherspoons said: "This was a regrettable administration error and as such Wetherspoon pleaded guilty in order to save the court's time.

"It was noted in court that there were no issues with the running of the pub during the period."

Harrow Cllr Phillip O'Dell said: "It's essential that people with the right training and experience are in place to run licensed premises, and fulfil their duty of care to both customers and the wider community."