“This petition as been created by the licensee’s of Soho. If you live, work or just visit Soho, and you are familiar with The Endurance Pub and want to support us against Westminster Councils objective for a complete ban on outside drinking and socializing then please sign our petition. It is the councils intention to enforce a complete ban on outside drinking in all licensed premises.”
http://petitions.pm.gov.uk/SaveOurSoho/
Soho’s move towards becoming a sanitized, corporate hellhole appears to be moving forward with the news that Westminster Council intends to ban people from drinking outside.
Whilst police already have the powers to confiscate booze from anyone they don’t like the look of it now seems that this ban will extend to pubs and bars as well.
Whilst we can’t find any proposed legislation on the Council’s website as yet their ‘One City’ programme includes this objective:
“Objective: To tackle communities’ fear of crime caused or aggravated by the visible activities of people engaged in alcohol and substance misuse.”
Westminster Council is dominated by Tory buffoons, several of whom have now joined Boris’ team. It seems it’s not only Labour who are intent on removing any enjoyment from life.
Meanwhile it’s looking increasingly likely that our festivals are under threat as exclusively revealed in the void yesterday.
Boris has apointed, Asian but still Oxbridge, Munira Mirza, as London’s ‘Culture Director’ and she’s already spouting that she intends to review the capital’s free events programme.
After leaving Oxford Mirza has worked for a variety of think tanks and Arts Foudantions, in other words she’s never had a proper job. She has a bee in her bonnet about Arts Funding being given to ethnic groups so it looks likely that the anti-racist Rise festival could well be on the way out.
We did manage to dig out an email address for her, so you can tell her what you think – muniramirza@yahoo.co.uk
With Boris having already argued that the fourth plinth at Trafalgar Square should be occupied by a statue of war hero Sir Keith Park it looks like art in London is set to reflect the stuffy blue rinse Tory brigade who now laughingly call themselves our leaders.
2 responses so far ↓
Dan Martin // June 12, 2008 at 4:21 pm |
I’d like to start seeing some factual evidence provided by the government, as to what dangers drinking outside a pub poses to you or I before I give up more of my civil liberties and ban something else.
I am however of the opinion that until our press rediscover subjective reporting, our politicans will continue to base public policy on the reported reaction to emotive stories printed in the very same press.
Its a self perptulating loop and one that is not hard to imagine a government abusing:
Feed the press an emotive story, claim the solution is to remove the liberty to do said thing, the press seek to find the most emotive response from the public (usually the most extreem) and after out extreeming each other the politician claims that the reporting denotes the mood of the country and removes the liberty to do what ever it was.
Bingo, do anything you like and claim its what everyone wants… if you’re making the rules!
Susie // June 16, 2008 at 1:47 pm |
Thankfully, there is no proposed ban. See http://www.ianvisits.co.uk/blog/2008_06_16/an-outdoor-drinking-ban-in-soho/