Busted bars pledge to tighten up after underage alcohol police operation in Portsmouth

TWO establishments that were caught serving drink to underage teenagers say they have upped their game.
By The Newsroom
Published 7th Apr 2017, 18:26 BST
Updated 8th Apr 2017, 22:25 BST

This week Hampshire Constabulary revealed that three places in Portsmouth – the Holiday Inn in Farlington, and Bowlplex and All Bar One at Gunwharf Quays – were caught in a police operation.

The hotel lost its alcohol licence for 96 hours, while the other two were given fixed penalty notices.

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Lee Price, the general manager, of the Holiday Inn Express Portsmouth – North said: ‘We take this very seriously and have put extensive measures in place to tighten all of our procedures in regards to the responsible service of alcohol.

‘This has included running rigorous training workshops and working closely with the local licensing authorities to ensure all staff exercise strict age verification procedures when serving alcohol to patrons who appear under the age of 25.’

A spokesman for All Bar One said: ‘We’re disappointed with the result of the test purchase.

‘We have strict operating guidelines in place to ensure the responsible retailing of alcohol in our bars, which include a Challenge 21 policy. We have investigated the matter and completed re-training for the whole team following this issue.’

A Bowlplex spokeswoman said that it would be retraining staff and had met a licensing officer to discuss how to bring in new measures.