Bar owner furious after royal visitor denied entry
AUSTRALIA: The owner of the Brisbane bar who refused entry to Denmark’s Crown Prince Frederik because he did not have ID has lashed out at the state’s ‘‘ridiculous’’ lockout laws.
The prince, an avid sailor who is in Australia for the Hamilton Island Race Week, fell foul of Queensland’s tough liquor laws at the Jade Buddha in the CBD just before midnight on Friday.
The prince has previously had better luck at Aussie pubs. He famously met his future Australian wife Mary Donaldson at Sydney’s Slip Inn during the 2000 Olympics.
Jade Buddha co-owner Phil Hogan said Prince Frederik arrived with plainclothes police from the Dignitary Protection Unit, who asked that he be allowed to enter despite not having ID.
Security did an internet search to confirm the prince’s identity while the officers contacted the Office of Liquor and Gaming Regulation for approval for him to enter the venue, Hogan said.
Even with a one-off approval, Hogan admitted the bar was ‘‘probably bending the rules’’ by admitting the future king of Denmark.
The incident has cast fresh light on the state’s ID scanner laws, which came into effect in July as part of an effort to curb alcohol-fuelled violence. All patrons arriving after 10pm are required to provide ID to be scanned.
Hogan said the embarrassing Prince Frederick incident was the ‘‘tip of the iceberg’’. ‘‘For every prince that gets knocked back there’s a million normal people. We are dealing with this all the time. It’s a ridiculous law. It was bound to happen.
‘‘Every licensee in the city has been up and arms about it,’’ he said.
Last month award-winning Brisbane bar the Greshham was forced to turn away a group of highly respected French winemakers.
But Attorney-General Yvette D’Ath said the laws had been effective. ‘‘More than 1.4 million IDs have been scanned since the laws were introduced in July and more than 70 violent offenders stopped from entering licensed venues as a result.’’ - AAP