Licencing Hours
For most of English history there has been no restriction on when pubs can sell beer. Given that water was frequently polluted by sewage, dead animals and the like, beer was thought to be more healthy. And beer contains food value.
During World War I the munitions workers were earning very good wages for their hard work. Some of them got drunk, and did not turn in for work in the morning. Production was affected.
The problem was so serious that the Government passed a law giving the local magistrates powers to decide on when pubs could sell alcohol. Adjustments could be made for local conditions.
These laws were in force for most of the 20th century. There are some observers who would like to see them brought back.
Police Manpower
There are never enough policemen for all the work that there is.
Rural areas near large towns complain that the police concentrate on the town, and the country districts are neglected.
With all these pressures on police time, enforcement of pub closing times was not a high priority. Provided there was no unruly behavior the police might well never visit the pubs. “Lock-ins” were quite popular. The door was locked, the lights nearest the street were turned out, and people would drink until the publican wanted to go to bed.
Some pubs adjusted their hours for lock ins, perhaps not opening until 8pm or 9pm, because they were going to be open until very late – or very early. Provided there were no complaints the police either did not know or did not care.
A New Inspector
The police rotate their staff, to give them experience of different kinds of communities and different kinds of work. Our valley was blessed with a new, relatively young, Inspector. He was given our easy low crime area for his first Inspector posting.
The Inspector decided that the widespread ignoring of licencing hours was making a mockery of the law across his district. He was going to do something about it.
A wiser man might have sent police officers to warn every pub and club that licencing hours were going to be enforced.
The Inspector decided it was better to make an example of someone, and then all the licencees would see he meant business.
The police shifts change at midnight. At half past midnight several police cars appeared in a hamlet that rarely saw a police car.
The village club was raided. It was a typical scene of depravity, with a couple of men playing pool, and six other men drinking beer. As all of them were drinking “after hours” they were all committing a criminal offence, and so of course was the barman.
The drinkers were all police officers from the shift that had just gone off duty.
The Inspector was faced with a dilemma.
He ought to prosecute the barman, but the barman would say in court that his customers were all police officers, so why were they not prosecuted?
His superiors would not be amused at the situation he had created, whether he prosecuted the police officers or whether he didn’t.
The inspector told the barman that he would not be prosecuted this time, but not to do it again. And a wiser Inspector sent police officers to warn all the pubs and clubs that licencing hours would now be enforced.
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