Barred pubgoer says he will take Pubwatch to European Court of Human Rights
The chairman of National Pubwatch has admitted the organisation will be damaged if Stuart Rescorla succeeds in his bid to challenge a ban handed out by the branch in Padstow, Cornwall.
The 24-year-old has been barred from all pubs in the town until at least November after reportedly breaching an interim ban when he entered the Old Custom House pub this month.
He denies going into the outlet and said the branch has no evidence to support its decision.
He told the PMA he wanted to “take the fight against Pubwatch as far as it needs to go”.
Injustice
Rescorla said: “This is an organisation that does exactly what it wants and goes completely against the standards of justice we have in this country. The law says a man is innocent until proven guilty but Pubwatch just gets to decide the rules.
“I’m sure there are many other people like me, who have been forced out of their local pubs because of a meeting behind closed doors without a chance to defend themselves. How can that be right?
“I have been getting legal advice about taking this to the European Court of Human Rights and it seems like I have a good case.”
Steve Baker, chairman of National Pubwatch, said he backed the Padstow branch’s decision and insisted Rescorla had the right to appeal.
He said: “What about the human rights of other people to enjoy their drink in a pub or the rights of publicans to run their business?”
Precedent
On the potential effects of Rescorla taking his claim to Europe, Baker said: “Pubwatch’s legal basis for enforcing bans is only as strong as the last case. If this man was successful in claiming his human
rights were being infringed then this would set a precedent that judges undoubtedly would refer back to. That would be damaging to Pubwatch.”
Tim Martin, chairman of pubs chain JD Wetherspoon, previously backed Buckingham Pubwatch in a judicial review.
He said: “It’s a vexed issue for publicans. The present law is that it’s a house you are going into and the publican doesn’t have to give a reason to ask you to leave. It’s not a court of law — it’s a situation where you have to make a decision there and then.
“I very often get people saying they have been barred from a particular Wetherspoon’s pub because of a problem with the licensee at another venue. They ask me to help out and
I always tell them — that’s the licensee’s decision and it’s not my place to go against them. That authority is essential to the way pubs work.
“Licensees already have a very difficult job and anything that makes that more difficult is just going to lead to more pub closures.”
