Legal

Legal advice: Make your views known on licensing

08-May-2003

By David Clifton of thePublican.com's legal team of experts from London solicitors Joelson Wilson.The work of the House of Commons standing committee...

Pubs use CB link to cut drug crime

08-May-2003

Town centre pubs in Bracknell are using a CB radio link to combat drug dealers and other troublemakers.The pubs, all members of the Berkshire town's...

Satellite systems are ruled offside

08-May-2003

By Clive Smith The organisation appointed to investigate the growing illegal use of European satellite systems in pubs is set to take legal action to...

The Hunters Inn, a characterful detached property with origi

08-May-2003

The property is situated in the pretty village of Newton Tracey, approximately four miles from the historic North Devon Town of Barnstaple. The...

The Manchester office of national hotel agents, Robert Barry

08-May-2003

Deals completed by them recently include Stone Villa at Chester and the Grove Guest House in nearby Wrexham. The two guest houses changed hands for a...

McDonald's outlets to go on the market

07-May-2003

Dozens of high profile sites are set to hit the market as struggling fast-food chain McDonald's offloads restaurants across the UK.Reports are that...

Act now to meet legislation laid out in the DDA

06-May-2003

Pub operators need to act quickly to meet the government's imminent disability discrimination legislation, warns expert Alex Taggart.Thousands of...

Time allowed for licence transfers "sensible

06-May-2003

A week following the sudden death of a licensee is long enough for families to arrange the transfer of a pub's licence, MPs have been told.Licensing...

Licensing Bill amendments

02-May-2003

by David Clifton of thePublican.com's legal team of experts from London solicitors Joelson Wilson.I wrote on this site on April 22 about the scrutiny...

Chequers finds a mate with new owner

01-May-2003

A renowned food-led country inn in the picturesque Vale of Belvoir has been sold through the Nottingham office of agents Christie & Co. The 17th...

Tighten up over tipping warning

01-May-2003

by Tom Stainer Pub bosses have been warned to tighten up on tipping policies to avoid long and costly employment litigation. The warnings come after...

Police issue con alert

01-May-2003

Licensees around the country are being warned about an extremely convincing confidence trickster who has recently conned two pubs in Newmarket, and...

Trade alarmed as SFI's probe drags its feet

01-May-2003

By The PMA Team Industry figures are expressing surprise at how long it is taking for Price Waterhouse Coopers and law firm Simmons and Simmons to...

Councils hold key to music reform

01-May-2003

There still seems to be considerable confusion about the question of small-scale musical activities in pubs when reform takes place. In particular,...

Deregulation talks reveal BACTA's machines of the future to

01-May-2003

MPs have been given a glimpse of the future with a prototype of the next generation of gaming machine which was delivered to the House of Commons....

Sums add up for George's fresh face

01-May-2003

The George Inn, the only pub in the beautiful Yorkshire Dales village of Thoralby, near Leyburn, North Yorkshire, has been sold. The Grade II listed...

Whitbread sells 34 Beefeaters

30-Apr-2003

Whitbread Restaurants, which operates the Beefeater and Brewers Fayre pub restaurant chains, has revealed that it has sold 34 of the 51 Beefeater...

The rules of the game: changes to gaming law

30-Apr-2003

Pubs will be affected by changes to the gaming lawby David Clifton of thePublican.com's legal team of experts from London solicitors Joelson...

Cash in hand: applying for a pub mortgage

28-Apr-2003

When applying for a pub mortgage where do you turn for advice? Michelle Perrett reports.You've made the decision that it's time for a change and you...

Government denies £25 charge for ID cards

25-Apr-2003

Rumours that national identity cards could cost £25 have been denied by the government. National newspaper reports last week said Home Secretary...

Reform puts the squeeze on clubs

24-Apr-2003

While most of the attention in the licensing reform debates has been focused on the on-trade, the continuing position of registered members' clubs...

Smoking ban could be in new bill

24-Apr-2003

Concerns are growing that plans to ban smoking in pubs could be added to the new Licensing Bill. Labour MP Gareth Thomas, who is pushing through a...

Customs targets 'bargain' cigarettes

24-Apr-2003

Customs officials are cracking down on a new breed of website which claims to offer imported cigarettes and tobacco at cheap prices. The websites...

Pubcos need a new code of conduct

24-Apr-2003

Why don't licensees check with lawyers before they sign a lease? You'd think it was the most obvious thing in the world to do. But according to our...

Musicians say Commons vote threatens pub events

24-Apr-2003

Music campaigners say they are "back to square one" following the decision by MPs, overseeing the committee stage, to overturn pub entertainment...

Tikka label doesn't curry much favour

24-Apr-2003

by Claire Hu Tikka Gold is being forced to change the labels on its new bottled beer after the Indian High Commission claimed the use of the...

Westminster aims to

24-Apr-2003

clean up' Chinatown by Claire Hu Westminster City Council has launched a draft plan for London's Chinatown which aims to deter poor quality bars...

Advice on taking on a lease

23-Apr-2003

I am looking to buy a lease with a friend. It is a pub that needs substantial renovation upstairs (needs the trade kitchen to be properly...

Westminster City Council calls for more public money

23-Apr-2003

A call to match longer pub opening hours with funding for improved policing and public transport has put Westminster City Council on the same side as...

Standing Committee on the Licensing Bill starts talks

22-Apr-2003

by David Clifton of thePublican.com's legal team of experts from London solicitors Joelson Wilson.Time will tell whether April Fool's Day was an...

MP bids to ban smoking in venues that sell food

17-Apr-2003

A Labour MP has won the right to introduce a bill to ban smoking in all public places that serve food. Gareth Thomas, MP for Harrow West, gained...

Tenanted pubcos in premises licence snub

17-Apr-2003

Tenanted pub companies will not be able to register an interest on the premises licence of their pubs under the new Licensing Bill. The government...

Nottingham police charge pubs for policing

17-Apr-2003

A new proposal to force licensees to pay for extra policing has been slammed as "unfair" by the industry.Nottingham chief constable Steve Green has...

Howells' poor grip on reality' hinders reform

17-Apr-2003

There seems to be a growing frustration among many of those involved with the process of licensing that the minister responsible for piloting the...

First-time buyer gets her Billy

17-Apr-2003

A first-time buyer Rachel Morgan from Northampton has purchased the leasehold interest in the King William IV pub (known locally as the King...

Family tie cut after 40 years in North Wales

17-Apr-2003

The Bryn Howel Hotel at Llangollen in North Wales has changed hands after 40 years in the same family ownership. The outlet had been run most...

MA poll finds majority will absorb tax rises

17-Apr-2003

By Steve Hemsley Fewer than half of licensees are planning to increase the price of beer or wine following last week's Budget. The trade has slammed...

Report sparks row over passive smoking claim

17-Apr-2003

by Claire Hu A controversial new report claims 17% of pub and bar staff are likely to die from heart disease or lung cancer because they work in a...

Pub smoke kills appeal

17-Apr-2003

Recent press articles saying that the "traditional pub is dying" has triggered this letter. I have been a regular pubgoer, but, like many people who...

Licensing reform update

16-Apr-2003

by the British Beer & Pub AssociationThe Commons Committee debating the Licensing Bill has now met seven times over four days and completed...

Energy supplies: Life's a gas for Calor

15-Apr-2003

For many rural pubs, energy supplies can be a problem. LPG is one solution.City folk often have little comprehension of the trials of country life....

A place in the sun: running a pub abroad

15-Apr-2003

Licensees looking for a challenge are snapping up pubs from Spain to Australia. Michelle Perrett finds out more.So you've had enough of the UK's...

Maureen Batty is about to become the first woman Governer in

10-Apr-2003

Two hundred and ten years of history will be laying heavily on Maureen Batty's shoulders when she steps through the Savoy Hotel's elegant portals...

A popular Grade II-listed 15th-century pub with a formidable

10-Apr-2003

The Tradesman's Arms is situated in the pretty picture postcard Devon village of Stokenham. It is just under a mile from the glorious South Hams...

fears grow over saturation

10-Apr-2003

by Tony Halstead and The PMA Team Fears are growing that local authority control of licensing will mean a blanket ban on new openings as more and...

Licensing reform update

10-Apr-2003

In an exclusive new series, the British Beer & Pub Association takes a look at what's happening with the Licensing Bill as it nears the end of...

Trade split on licence fees

10-Apr-2003

There has been a mixed reaction to news that the government could set new licence fees based on pub turnover and location. While some licensees have...

Reform loses its path in cloud of confusion

10-Apr-2003

Back in December I commented on how the proposed new policy from Westminster City Council on the question of "stress areas" and refusing licences...

New EU laws threaten UK's family brewers

10-Apr-2003

by Mike Bennett New European laws aimed at sweeping away defensive share structures are threatening the future of three of the UK's family brewers....