'Poorly run' pub's licence suspended after brawl

A man suffered a one-and-a-half inch cut to his forehead, two black eyes and a broken nose in the fight in June

A pub's licence has been suspended after its "poor management" was blamed for a brutal assault.

City of Wolverhampton Council has suspended the licence of the New Gate Inn in Bilston Road, Wolverhampton, for one month after a man went to hospital with a fractured skull.

The council's licensing committee said the licence holder Raj Kumar Jassal had also failed to notify the authority over changes in staff for 17 years and blamed the poor management of the pub for the brawl.

Mr Jassal said while he lived above the pub and was named as both the licence holder and premises supervisor, he was not involved with the day-to-day running since 2008.

The council's licensing committee said at a hearing last Wednesday that the pub's licence holder should have notified the council to change the licence when the supervisors had been replaced.

West Midlands Police said the pub's licence had not altered since 2008 despite several changes in personnel, and it was "no longer fit for purpose".

Mr Jassal said he was unaware that he needed to tell the council if the supervisor changed and had never done so, and the pub's current manager, Paul Tonks, who is now officially named as supervisor, was also unaware that he needed to apply to the council.

As part of its licence, a pub must have a designated supervisor to be able to sell alcohol, and the records must be kept up to date.

Both the police and the council said they had "serious concerns" over the number of supervisors that had worked at the pub without notification of the council, and as a result, it was unclear who ran the pub and whether they were sufficiently qualified for the role.

The council agreed to reduce the pub's opening hours to 10:00 BST and midnight each day and requested CCTV to be a requirement of the licence.

This news was gathered by the Local Democracy Reporting Service which covers councils and other public service organisations.