Legal

Legal advice: Protecting your website

03-Mar-2005

By Briony Edwards of thePublican.com's team of legal experts from London solicitors Joelson Wilson.By making your website accessible to the world at...

Scottish Licensing Bill set to abolish happy hour

03-Mar-2005

Happy hours are on borrowed time in Scotland after plans to outlaw promotions which could encourage binge-drinking were outlined in the Scottish...

What companies told the pubco inquiry:

03-Mar-2005

The pubcos have married monopoly of supply and its attendant price iniquities to a system of leases and rent reviews which are disadvantageous to the...

Wylam eyes 24-hour Glass Spider licence

03-Mar-2005

Wylam Leisure is to apply for a 24-hour licence for its 1,500-capacity Glass Spider venue in Sunderland. The company, which also runs city-centre...

Tide now favours McQuater MBO at Barracuda

03-Mar-2005

Barracuda chief executive Mark McQuater is hoping to lead a management buyout at the company after its owner, PPM Ventures, prepares to exit the...

Smoke ban battle reignited by Hain

03-Mar-2005

Minister adopts MA's Room For All campaign by Ewan Turney The smoking ban saga in England and Wales is far from over as evidenced by a senior...

Subtle Scots makeover

03-Mar-2005

Snifter is a committed pub man, happy to devote himself to the their homely, warm embrace. But every now and then his head is turned by something a...

SAB Miller in talks to snap up Topvar

03-Mar-2005

The Morning Advertiser has learnt that SAB Miller is in talks to acquire Slovakia's third-largest brewer Topvar. Privatised in 1994, Topvar, is now...

Report says hosts fail in lease negotiations

03-Mar-2005

by Ewan Turney A general lack of property awareness and a failure to seek legal advice mean that the vast majority of small business tenants, such...

Police hunt pair after pub killing

03-Mar-2005

A man died after being stabbed in a north London pub following an argument with two men. Robert Elston, 45, was stabbed in the Curragh pub in High...

Licensing fees furore reaches boiling point

03-Mar-2005

It is unusual for peers to get heated, but Lord MacIntosh of Haringey had a fine head of steam last week when he was called upon in the House of...

Licensees have grown dizzy over the years trying to keep tra

03-Mar-2005

But if anyone's given up on trying to make sense of it all, now's the time to take note again. For the news this week that SFI is up for sale, as...

Licensees to be hit bySky double whammy

03-Mar-2005

by Tony Halstead Pubs are to be hit with a double whammy price increase by Sky from August. The broadcaster has revealed it will combine new...

How to set up a Post Office in your pub

03-Mar-2005

With the high amounts of cash and administration involved, setting up a post office is not as straightforward as just any old shop. First of all,...

Ban on chav-wear stamps out trouble

03-Mar-2005

A Stourbridge nightclub that banned "chav wear" has seen violent crime at the venue reduced to almost zero inside seven months. The Enteramma-owned...

Bath: we want more powers'

03-Mar-2005

by John Harrington Councillors in Bath are making their own bid to persuade the Government to give local authorities greater powers over licensing...

All eyes are on the sale of beleaguered SFI

03-Mar-2005

Slug & Lettuce operator SFI Group has been put up for sale, the Morning Advertiser has learnt. The company has set a deadline of mid-March for...

A marriage made

03-Mar-2005

Stag and hen parties can bring a real boost to trade, but how do pubs handle the potential binge-drinking problems and is the extra business worth...

Bristol brewing begins to bounce back

03-Mar-2005

Signs outside the Wellington Hotel in the Horfield district of Bristol last week announced: "Beer seminar with Roger Protz". Even though I've been...

DCMS forced to amend flawed' licensing fees

03-Mar-2005

by John Harrington The fiasco surrounding licensing fees took a new turn last week, when the Department for Culture, Media & Sport (DCMS) was...

Legal advice: Copyright infringement

02-Mar-2005

All the legalities concerning copyright infringement.By Briony Edwards of thePublican.com's team of legal experts from London solicitors Joelson...

Report leads to government rift on upward-only rents

02-Mar-2005

Licensees campaigning for an end to upward-only rent reviews could be left high-and-dry by a government rift in the wake of a long awaited report on...

Publicans warned over SIA licence deadline

01-Mar-2005

Publicans are being warned that they could lose their livelihood and face up to five years in jail if they employ unregistered door supervisors.By...

Legal advice: Knowing the facts

25-Feb-2005

Whether your staff are employed or self-employed will make a big difference to their legal rights.By Martin Donoghue of thePublican.com's team of...

Receivers take helm at 46-strong letting' firm

24-Feb-2005

by The PMA Team Barber Letting, a multiple lessee that held 46 pubs with two major pub companies, has gone into receivership. The Barnsley-based...

Seizing the Laurel crown

24-Feb-2005

Laurel Pub Company is now owned byproperty tycoon Robert Tchenguiz. The PMA Team meets new chief executive Julian Sargeson, who will imminently...

Wales ready to battle smoking ban

24-Feb-2005

The battle against a national smoking ban in Wales is hotting up - with The Publican now working with licensees to help them add their voices to the...

Drink Talking: Chris Maclean

24-Feb-2005

It's high time that people took notice of all the good that a decent local pub can do says Chris Maclean of the Plough & Harrow in Bridge, Kent.I...

Yates pub refused licence as 'threat to public safety'

24-Feb-2005

Yates Group is appealing to the crown court against a decision by magistrates to refuse a licence at its site in Swinton, Lancashire.It was refused...

Davies' pub-to-housing plan fuels village outcry

24-Feb-2005

by Ewan Turney Cotswold villagers launched a scathing attack on fashion guru George Davies and his wife, Fiona, claiming that they have "their own...

Big brewers deal price hike blow to pubs: Ross

24-Feb-2005

by John Harrington Stuart Ross, chief executive of Scottish brewer and pubco Belhaven, has hit out at the "hugely inflationary" price rises...

Entire GK estate to joinPubwatch by year-end

24-Feb-2005

by John Harrington Greene King has vowed to get every one of its entire 600-strong estate into a Pubwatch scheme by the end of the year. The...

Fashion guru's plan is not all sewn up

24-Feb-2005

George Davies may be a fashion guru but his grasp of licensing and planning laws may not be stitched up properly. His wife's plan to close their...

Host on trail to use Slug & Lettuce name

24-Feb-2005

A landlord who has recently taken on a Berkshire pub has hit a dilemma over plans to revive its original name the Slug & Lettuce. John...

Recouping closure losses

24-Feb-2005

QWhen we took over this lease, the premises was in a bad state in certain parts and despite numerous requests, the brewery did nothing. All of a...

Ministry of Sound wants 24-hr licence

24-Feb-2005

London nightclub the Ministry of Sound is set to be one ofthe first venues to apply for a24-hour licence. The club already opens until 5am on...

Make the guilty pubs pay, says ACPO chief

24-Feb-2005

by John Harrington Pubs should contribute to local policing or medical costs but only those venues that are known to cause problems ACPO...

Locals pull off buyout to save Swan Inn

24-Feb-2005

A 600-year-old Cheshire pub has been saved from closure after regulars staged a buyout last week. Former owner Ian Edmonson had planned to convert...

New course set for riverside inn

24-Feb-2005

Former hotelier Andrew Parke has taken the helm of the unusual Bridge Inn and Restaurant in Acle, Norfolk. Parke purchased the Bridge's leasehold...

Peachtree tests water with 80-year leases

24-Feb-2005

A new pub company is to trial an 80-year free-of-tie assignable lease on two pubs in East Anglia. The pair the Sibton White Horse, near...

OFT rules Nottingham pricing scheme illegal

24-Feb-2005

by Tony Halstead A drinker who complained about the price of a pint after pubs tried to set a minimum price for beer in Nottingham has seen his case...

Should Ken Livingstone have apologised for his Nazi concentr

24-Feb-2005

Mike Smith Three Compasses Hornsey London "I think it is something that if he had said in private no-one would have thought twice about it, but...

Trade's a treasure at Hook & Parrot

24-Feb-2005

The Hook & Parrot, which attracts a varied mix of custom during the day and evenings, has come onto the market in Devon. The pub is positioned...

Two Edinburgh pubcos offer to pay for policing

24-Feb-2005

by Ewan Turney Two of Edinburgh's top pub operators have offered to pay for policing as part of their applications for new large clubs in the city...

Yates's bar loses licence after violence

24-Feb-2005

A Yates's Wine Lodge in Swinton, Greater Manchester, has had its licence application rejected by Salford magistrates after they heard that police had...

Portman Group ruling angers licensees

23-Feb-2005

The Portman Group has been forced to defend itself from a barrage of industry criticism following the retailer alert it put out against Kalashnikov...

Legal advice: Advertising hoardings

23-Feb-2005

By thePublican.com's team of legal experts from London solicitors Joelson Wilson.A court case reported recently dealt with the question of whether a...