Chimneys and The Sunday Post in Southsea have licences revoked after staying open after-hours

Chimneys in Clarendon Road and The Sunday Post in Osborne Road, both of which are run by Haken Arabbetou, were the subject of licence reviews on Monday called by council licensing officers who said they had opened past their allowed hours on multiple occasions.

Portsmouth City Council papers showed Chimneys, which had previously also been called The Sunday Post, has been run as a bar for several years, despite being warned as far back as February 2017 that it needed a new licence to do so.

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The council’s licensing manager Nickii Humphreys, requesting the reviews, said alcohol was being sold beyond the hours allowed in the licence, while both noise abatement and planning contravention notices had had to be issued.

She said opening hours breaches had also been recorded at Mr Arabettou’s Osborne Road bar.

A licensing sub-committee met behind closed doors to consider the two reviews due to concerns it would lead to the identification of ‘third parties’ had it been held in public.

However, decision notices have now been published for both reviews, detailing councillors’ concerns around the bars’ management.

On Chimneys, it said: ‘The sub-committee was satisfied that the premises has a prolonged and extensive history of non-compliance with almost every regulatory regime. At best this was due to mismanagement and a lack of due diligence, and at worst wilful refusal.’

It said the failure of Mr Arabbetou to address earlier warnings meant no lesser response than revoking the licence was appropriate.

The decision notice for The Sunday Post said Mr Arabbetou blamed a now-sacked manager for breaches of opening hours but adds that ‘the sub-committee cannot accept that the licence holder bears no responsibility’.

It adds: ‘The number of incidents and the period during which they have occurred means that the sub-committee is satisfied that revocation is and appropriate and proportionate approach.

‘Police evidence indicated that further restriction or amendment of the licence would not likely result in compliance.’