Football fans heading to the pub for England's World Cup round-of-16 match against Mexico will be able to see the final whistle – after the prime minister performed a late U-turn on licensing hours.
Sir Keir Starmer on Thursday announced that pubs in England and Wales would be allowed to stay open until 05:00 on Monday, following an earlier government insistence that no further relaxations would be made. The match in Mexico City kicks off at 01:00 UK time and is not expected to finish until at least 03:00.
“Pubs in England and Wales can stay open until 5am for England's World Cup match after PM Starmer reverses earlier decision.”
“Football might be coming home but we're making sure fans don't have to,” Starmer said on Thursday afternoon, in a statement that prompted cheers from publicans and industry bodies.
The decision overturned the position set out earlier that day by business minister Kate Dearden. Responding to a question from Liberal Democrat MP Max Wilkinson in the House of Commons, Dearden had said pub opening hours would not be extended further for the 01:00 kick-off. Wilkinson had warned that pubs would “miss out on a real opportunity to get money in the till if ministers do not make a blanket extension”.
Local Government Secretary Steve Reed confirmed the government would pass emergency legislation through parliament on Friday, describing it as “one of the fastest changes in the law that we've seen”. He explained that previous relaxations “hadn't covered the eventuality of England playing so late in the night”.
Licensing hours had already been extended for the World Cup from 23:00 to 01:00 for games with kick-offs from 17:00 up to 21:00, and up until 02:00 for kick-offs between 21:00 and 22:00. Those extensions followed a six-week public consultation which opened in December. Normally, individual pubs have to apply to their local council at least five working days in advance.
Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer and Pub Association, welcomed the change. “We all know the best place to watch the match is down the local,” she said. Michael Kill, chief executive of the Night Time Industries Association, called it “fantastic news” that would be “hugely welcomed by operators”.
Greene King pubs said more than 600 of its venues across England would stay open for the game, including in Birmingham, Bristol, London, Carlisle, Liverpool and Folkestone.
The City A.M. newspaper described the move as a “Cruyff turn”, noting that before the policy reversal, pubs would have been forced to kick punters out at half time.
There are concerns that pubs opening late will…