Q I often have a guest beer in my pub, which we put on one pump in the main bar. If someone orders the beer in the back bar, is it true, as a person in the bar claimed the other day, that I cannot pour it because the pump must be in view of the customer? It seems ridiculous to me.
A There's one important point that has been missed out. This rule only applies where metered dispense equipment is installed and consequently unstamped glasses are being used in the premises.
From the facts in your letter I have assumed that this is a handpump and not a meter, in which case the rule would not apply in your premises.
Under the terms of a revised Order made under the Weights & Measures Act, the requirement for stamped glasses is dispensed with for metered beer as long as the dispense point "is installed in such a position that the delivery of the liquor into the container can readily be seen by customers in that part of the premises where the buyer ordered the liquor".
So with metering equipment, the customer is entitled to see his pint poured in front of him, so that he can be sure that a full measure has been dispensed from the equipment.
However, where free-flow dispense points are installed and stamped glasses are in use, there is no specific instruction on visibility, and a dispense point in another bar could be used. The only problem that might occur in such circumstances is the pouring of the wrong type or quality of beer, which could constitute an offence under the Trade Descriptions Act.
Social club has no PEL
Q There is a large social club near our pub which organises dances and entertainment on a regular basis. When I checked, I discovered that they had never applied for an entertainment licence, and the local authority had no trace of their activities. Can they be prosecuted for running public events without a licence?
A The answer to your question will depend very much on whether your allegation that events are open to the public is, in fact, true.
An entertainment licence is only required from the local authority where the premises are used for "public dancing or music or any other public entertainment of a like kind". Therefore events or entertainments which are not open to the public do not require a licence.
It is likely that this club is relying on the fact that the entertainment that it provides for members and their guests does not fall within the classification of "public entertainment" under the relevant Act.
Even though the guests are not members of the club, they are still not to be considered members of the public, according to leading cases on the subject, and their admission to the premises does not in itself render the club liable to entertainment licensing, as long as they are admitted in accordance with the club rules as genuine guests of members.
The new licensing laws will change all this, and clubs which provide entertainment will be regulated in a similar way to pubs.
Extensions and drinking up
Q Is there any drinking-up time on a Christmas extension other than the holiday extensions? Our local policeman says you have to close at the time stated on the extension, if it is a one-off.
A That is not right. Any extension is an extension of the permitted hours, so the "end of permitted hours" is the end of the extension. It means that the time mentioned on the special order of exemption is "time" for that evening, and then there is 20 minutes for drinking up.
Unless there was disorder on the premises, there is no power for the police to order you to close exactly at the time stated on the extension. You have a concession in the law for a further 20 minutes, and even for 30 minutes if the customers concerned are taking a late meal.