Pub’s £1,000 fine for indoor drinking

A WEST Wales pub has been hit with a £1,000 fine after customers were caught drinking inside before indoor hospitality was allowed to reopen.

Since Monday pubs have been allowed to serve alcohol indoors for the first time in more than five months. Pubs had been allowed to serve drinks outdoors since April 26, subject to a number of safety protocols being in place, but customers have not been allowed to drink or eat indoors until now.

One pub was caught with customers drinking inside more than two weeks ago, and the establishment, and some of the customers, have been hit in the pocket.

The Ffostrasol Arms, in the village of Ffostrasol between Llandysul

and Llangrannog, was the subject of routine checks carried out by council licensing officers and police in the lead up to the first May bank holiday weekend. According to Ceredigion Council, customers were discovered drinking inside the premises in what it described as “a blatant disregard to public safety and the law”.

As a result, the pub has been handed a £1,000 fine and a premises improvement notice, while some of the customers caught drinking inside were made to pay £60 each.

A spokeswoman for Ceredigion Council said: “On Friday, April 30, 2021, officers from Ceredigion Council’s public protection team were carrying out routine joint patrols with officers from Dyfedpowys Police when they found a small number of customers drinking inside the premises of the Ffostrasol Arms and not following the rules on keeping a social distance and wearing face coverings.

“The requirement for hospitality businesses to stay closed had only just been eased that week to allow businesses such as licensed premises to reopen their outdoor areas.

“It was therefore extremely disappointing to find a business showing such a blatant disregard to public safety and the law by allowing some of its customers to drink indoors.”

The Ffostrasol Arms has been allowed to remain open and was open as of this Monday.