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Glasgow - Toughened Glass Campaign for Pubs

On Thursday 29 April, Strathclyde Police, together with the Scottish Licensed Trade Association, Glasgow Late Night Operators Association and the Clerk to the Glasgow Licensing Board launched an initiative to encourage licensed premises in the city to utilise only toughened safety glass in their premises after 1st November 2010. 

In 2009, Assistant Chief Constable Nicholson noted there had been a number of glassing incidents leading to serious facial injuries across the Strathclyde force area. 

It is hoped that this initiative will serve to reduce these incidents further protecting the users of licensed premises and the staff that work therein.  Although several trade organisations were visibly in support of the application, Patrick Browne of the Scottish Beer and Pub Association who represents 1,500 pubs in Scotland, and 150 in the Glasgow area, did not come out in whole hearted support for the initiative. 

Patrick Browne is reported as saying: 

"We are opposed to blanket policies forcing the use of toughened glass in pubs in Glasgow, instead believing this should be focused on those premises where there is an identifiable problem."  

"Thankfully attacks involving the use of glass are very very rare, albeit that they are very serious for those involved, and the industry full supports targeted action to tackle the problem."

The appearance of the Clerk to the Licensing Committee may be of some concern to operators, especially those members of the Scottish Beer & Pub Association who previously successfully judicially reviewed the Glasgow Licensing board in 2006 when the Board attempted to introduce a blanket policy banning glass from the city's pubs.  Some may consider that the support of this initiative by the Clerk to the Licensing Committee may indicate an unofficial policy being implemented on all future licences in the city.

We await to see how many premises implement this policy voluntarily. 

Chris Grunert