British pubs continue to make Aussie pubs look well-behaved, while the relevant authorities further highlight the disparity.
March in British pubs was pretty brutal even by the standards set, with the usual assaults, brawls and innocent victims peaking when one of four men stabbed in one London pub died.
Police regularly report mayhem and routinely plead for public assistance to nab perpetrators of shocking violent acts in and around licensed venues.
And yet while patrons bleed and detectives search for clues to the whereabouts of assailants, neither they nor licensing authorities attempt to place blame on the establishments, even when sometimes the incidents are the result of gross intoxication.
In early March a brawl involving ten men outside the Treacle Mine pub resulted in one man copping “serious head injuries” from being hit with a bike chain. Officers are appealing for witnesses.
Just two days later, a man drinking in the Hop & Kilderkin pub on a Sunday night was suddenly punched multiple times by a stranger in an unprovoked attack. He suffered a broken jaw, cheek and nose and is undergoing surgery to fit metal plates in his face.
The assault was not reported to police until Tuesday. Bournemouth CID’s detective Allen is “appealing to anyone who recalls seeing a man being assaulted”.
The following week, a brawl at the Army Navy pub saw four men stabbed. One of the men has since died of his injuries. Two more remain in hospital, and one has been discharged.
Police arrested four men and six women over the incident, but are appealing for public assistance in finding two more men who fled the scene. It is unknown what started the fight.
Although British authorities appear to possess the wisdom that people can sometimes lose self-control when drinking and behave in an anti-social way, they are not without means for applying punishment to venues that prove too consistent in attracting violence.
The Slipp Inn, in Leeds, has been under licensing restrictions for prior bad deeds since mid-2012. These require the pub to post a registered staff member on the door from 8pm on busy nights, and on specified nights for the pub to also have a supervisor on duty.
Proprietors of the Slipp Inn, Admiral Taverns Piccadilly Ltd, are re-thinking their appeal to withdraw the licensing restrictions at a hearing tomorrow, after a recent report by local police cited continued incidents, including assaults on staff.
“There have been disturbances where glasses have been used as missiles,” reported PC Lynn Dobson of Leeds District Licensing.
“West Yorkshire Ambulance Service have called for assistance on occasions where victims have either refused to cooperate and/or drug use is suspected.
“It is felt that the conditions should remain on the licence for the protection of staff and customers.”
