Licensing Act 1872
Encyclopedia
The Licensing Act 1872 is an Act
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
. It enacted various regulations and offences relating to alcohol, particularly licensing of premises. Most parts of the Act have been superseded by more recent Licensing Act
s, but some parts remain in force. In particular, the Act creates an offence of being drunk in public with a maximum fine of level 1 on the standard scale
(currently £200); propelling a horse
, a cow (or other cattle), a steam engine
, or a loaded firearm
, with a possible penalty of a fine of up to £200 or 51 weeks in prison.
This act:
These policies were enforced by the police.
It was an unpopular Act for the working classes and there were a number of near riots when police tried to enforce closing hours. Brewers resented what they saw as an attack on their independence and profits; others disliked the Act because it interfered with personal liberty.
N.B. This Act does not provide the offence of being unfit through drink/drugs whilst cycling on a road/public place - this is provided by Section 30 Road Traffic Act 1988.
Act of Parliament
An Act of Parliament is a statute enacted as primary legislation by a national or sub-national parliament. In the Republic of Ireland the term Act of the Oireachtas is used, and in the United States the term Act of Congress is used.In Commonwealth countries, the term is used both in a narrow...
of the Parliament of the United Kingdom
Parliament of the United Kingdom
The Parliament of the United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland is the supreme legislative body in the United Kingdom, British Crown dependencies and British overseas territories, located in London...
. It enacted various regulations and offences relating to alcohol, particularly licensing of premises. Most parts of the Act have been superseded by more recent Licensing Act
Licensing Act
Licensing Act may refer to several Acts of Parliament:*Licensing Order of 1643, an Act imposing pre-publication censorship and prompting Milton to write Areopagitica*Licensing of the Press Act 1662, an Act regulating the printing industry...
s, but some parts remain in force. In particular, the Act creates an offence of being drunk in public with a maximum fine of level 1 on the standard scale
Standard scale
The standard scale is a system whereby financial criminal penalties in legislation have maximum levels set against a standard scale. Then, when inflation makes it necessary to increase the levels of the fines the legislators need to modify only the scale rather than each individual piece of...
(currently £200); propelling a horse
Horse
The horse is one of two extant subspecies of Equus ferus, or the wild horse. It is a single-hooved mammal belonging to the taxonomic family Equidae. The horse has evolved over the past 45 to 55 million years from a small multi-toed creature into the large, single-toed animal of today...
, a cow (or other cattle), a steam engine
Steam engine
A steam engine is a heat engine that performs mechanical work using steam as its working fluid.Steam engines are external combustion engines, where the working fluid is separate from the combustion products. Non-combustion heat sources such as solar power, nuclear power or geothermal energy may be...
, or a loaded firearm
Firearm
A firearm is a weapon that launches one, or many, projectile at high velocity through confined burning of a propellant. This subsonic burning process is technically known as deflagration, as opposed to supersonic combustion known as a detonation. In older firearms, the propellant was typically...
, with a possible penalty of a fine of up to £200 or 51 weeks in prison.
This act:
- restricted the closing times in public housePublic houseA public house, informally known as a pub, is a drinking establishment fundamental to the culture of Britain, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. There are approximately 53,500 public houses in the United Kingdom. This number has been declining every year, so that nearly half of the smaller...
s to midnight in towns and 11 o'clock in country areas. - regulated the content of beer. One of the most common practices was to add salt to the beer, which increased the thirst and therefore sales as well.
- said that licensing hours were to be determined by local authorities.
- gave boroughs the option of becoming completely 'dry' i.e. banning all alcohol.
These policies were enforced by the police.
It was an unpopular Act for the working classes and there were a number of near riots when police tried to enforce closing hours. Brewers resented what they saw as an attack on their independence and profits; others disliked the Act because it interfered with personal liberty.
N.B. This Act does not provide the offence of being unfit through drink/drugs whilst cycling on a road/public place - this is provided by Section 30 Road Traffic Act 1988.
Further reading
- Lowe, Norman, Mastering Modern British History, Macmillan Press LTD, 1998