Otley Run: Bar crawl venues could have to pay for policing
The pub crawl is not officially classed as an organised event, with drinkers walking between the 19 stops that are under separate management.Deputy leader of Leeds City Council, Jonathan Pryor, called the format a "loophole" and said the authority would be "looking to put pressure on the venues" to improve safety at a public meeting earlier this month.Two women were injured in a crossbow attack on the route in April, with a meeting being held to discuss the concerns of people living nearby.
Mr Waugh added: "I understand there's a lot of people that come to do the Otley Run on a Saturday and that the services must be stretched, as empathetic as I am with that, we are also stretched as a hospitality business."Month after month, there seems to be more cost layered into our business. Whether it's National Insurance contributions increasing, minimum wage increases. I just don't know how they can justify a levy on an already struggling industry."On Saturdays, Otley Road is busy with thousands of people taking part in the crawl, many of them donning fancy dress costumes.
Alfie Heale, who was dressed as a tiger, said it was "absolutely quality, best day out in Leeds"."It brings a lot of people to Leeds."Charlie Mack, a student in the city, said: "It's always good fun. The pubs are making lots of money, it's only one day a week so you can't really complain."Iona Taylor, who was with her friends in a beer garden of a pub, was celebrating her birthday weekend by doing the run."It's hilarious, I would recommend it to everyone. The camaraderie is amazing. It gets hectic. We've got here early to avoid the crowds but it's usually pretty full."
In 2014, the city of Nottingham introduced a night-time levy for licensed premises, which covered policing.It was revoked in 2022 to ease financial pressure on local businesses.Alex Sobel, MP for Leeds Central and Headingley, said he supported the concept."What would be best is if the pubs themselves voluntarily started to pay into a fund, to show willing."We know how much money, more or less, they make on a Saturday, it would be a very small amount of profit to contribute towards the policing of the event."
Listen to highlights from West Yorkshire on BBC Sounds, catch up with the latest episode of Look North.
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
BBC News
25 minutes ago
- BBC News
No evidence of stolen data in Glasgow cyber attack
Glasgow City Council has found no evidence of any data being stolen in a cyber attack that took a number of services offline in local authority also says there has been no sign of any data being leaked or misused after the incident, but advised people to remain services supplier CGI discovered malicious activity on servers managed by a third-party supplier on 19 June.A number of online services, including paying penalty charges and reporting school absences, became unavailable due to the council taking servers offline. No financial systems were affected by the attack and no details of bank accounts or credit/debit cards processed by those systems were compromised.A spokesperson for the council said: "As part of our investigation, experts are monitoring online activity and, to date, there has been no evidence of any data being leaked or misused."However, until forensic examinations of the affected servers are complete - and we can be confident whether any data has been stolen - we are advising anyone who has used any of the affected forms to be particularly cautious about contact claiming to be from Glasgow City Council."Some services, such as public freedom of information requests, can be accessed again while workarounds are being developed for other affected Scotland are involved in investigating the incident, along with the council, the Scottish Cyber Co-ordination Centre and the National Cyber Security Centre.A number of Scottish public bodies have been hit by cyber attacks in recent months, including a ransomware group targeting NHS Dumfries and Galloway last year which saw stolen files published online.
The Independent
37 minutes ago
- The Independent
London Pride celebrations to have ‘significant policing presence'
There will be a 'significant policing presence' in London for Pride celebrations on Saturday with more than a million people expected to head into the capital. The Metropolitan Police said it had been working closely with event organisers and other emergency services 'for many months in preparation for the event'. It added that there would be 'no tolerance of hate crime' at the celebrations. The parade, which will go from Hyde Park Corner to Whitehall Place via Piccadilly, will see hundreds of groups taking part. Among them will be contingents from the emergency services, including the Met, as well as other public bodies. The Met contingent will be made up of officers and staff from the Met LGBT+ Network and allies. The officers, who will not be in uniform, will be off-duty and not part of the policing operation on the day. Deputy Assistant Commissioner Dr Alison Heydari, who is leading the policing operation for Pride in London, said: 'The public can expect to see a significant policing presence in central London. Officers are there to ensure everyone taking part in the celebrations can do so in safety and security. 'Our primary role is to provide a reassuring presence while being able to respond swiftly and effectively to any incidents. 'Pride is a celebration of the LGBT+ community and those attending should be able to do so free from discrimination, abuse or fear. There will be no tolerance of hate crime – we would urge anyone who is a victim of it to speak to an officer immediately so we can take action. 'Any of our officers are able to help and support, but we will also have specialist LGBT+ community liaison officers deployed as part of the policing operation to assist where particular expertise is required. 'The areas around the parade and the various stages will be extremely busy, with Soho in particular likely to be very crowded. Please plan your travel to and from the event in advance, look out for each other and ask for help if you need it. 'As with any large public event, we would urge people attending to be alert and keep their eyes open. If you see something that doesn't look or feel right, please trust your instincts and bring it to the attention of an officer or a steward. In an emergency, always call 999.' The Pride in London celebrations will include a parade and a number of entertainment stages. Seven entertainment stages will be running, at Trafalgar Square, Leicester Square, Golden Square, Soho Square, Dean Street and Victoria Embankment Gardens. Police said pubs and bars across Westminster will be open as usual and are 'expected to be very busy'.
The Independent
37 minutes ago
- The Independent
Man broke police officer's nose in airport attack, court hears
Two brothers used a 'high level of violence' in assaulting police officers at Manchester Airport, a court has heard. Mohammed Fahir Amaaz, 20, and Muhammad Amaad, 26, are said to have struck out after police were called to respond to an earlier incident at the Starbucks cafe in the Terminal 2 building on 23 July 2024. Amaaz delivered a headbutt to the face of a member of the public and punched him in Starbucks, Liverpool Crown Court heard. Opening the prosecution case on Friday, Paul Greaney KC said officers who were already in the airport later traced the brothers to the terminal's car park payment area. Three officers, Pc Zachary Marsden and Pc Ellie Cook – both armed – and Pc Lydia Ward, unarmed, approached the defendants, he said. Mr Greaney went on: 'The officers attempted to move Mohammed Fahir Amaaz away from a payment machine in order to arrest him, but he resisted, and his brother Muhammad Amaad intervened. 'Both defendants assaulted Pc Marsden. 'In the moments that followed, the first defendant also assaulted Pc Cook and then Pc Ward too, breaking her nose. 'The defendants used a high level of violence.' Amaaz is alleged to have assaulted Pc Marsden and Pc Ward, causing them actual bodily harm. He is also accused of the assault of Pc Cook and the earlier assault of Abdulkareem Ismaeil at Starbucks. Amaad, 26, is alleged to have assaulted Pc Marsden, causing actual bodily harm. Both men, from Rochdale, Greater Manchester, deny the allegations. Mr Greaney said the defendants had travelled to the airport with their young nephew to collect their mother who was due to arrive back on a flight from Qatar. The prosecutor said: 'A man named Abdulkareem Ismaeil was on the same flight as the defendants' mother. He was travelling with his wife and three young children. 'It is clear that on the flight and/or shortly after it landed, something happened between the defendants' mother and Abdulkareem Ismaeil that made the defendants' mother unhappy. 'The defendants met their mother in the arrivals area of Terminal 2 and began to walk to the car park with her and the child that was with them. As they did so, they passed a Starbucks coffee house. 'Abdulkareem Ismaeil was in there with his wife and children. The defendants' mother spotted Abdulkareem Ismaeil and pointed him out to her sons. 'At just after 8.20pm, the defendants entered Starbucks and confronted Abdulkareem Ismaeil. During that confrontation, Mohammed Fahir Amaaz delivered a headbutt to the face of Abdulkareem Ismaeil and punched him, then attempted to deliver other blows, all in front of a number of children. 'The prosecution case is that this was obviously unlawful conduct.' Mr Greaney told jurors the prosecution's position was this was 'not a complicated case'. He said: 'The events you are concerned with were captured by CCTV cameras and, in relation to the events in the payment area on the body-worn cameras of police officers as well. 'So you will not have to depend only on the recollections of witnesses. You will also be able to see with your own eyes what happened. 'The two defendants assert, as we understand it, that at all stages they were acting in lawful self-defence or in defence of the other. 'Our prediction is that you will readily conclude that the defendants were not acting in lawful self-defence and that their conduct was unlawful.'
