Macs bar in Friargate

Under-fire bar and nightclub Macs has formally appealed a decision by Preston City Council to revoke its licence.

Andrew Macdonald, director of the bar in Friargate, confirmed he had instructed his legal team to challenge the decision by councillors.

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Macs bar was closed for six weeks from early June after Preston Police applied for a closure notice.

Mr Macdonald and his team successfully overturned the closure notice at court, before facing a two-day licensing hearing at the Town Hall.

Councillors decided to strip the bar of its premises licence after hearing evidence of underage drinking in the bar among other allegations of the licensing rules being ignored.

After nearly a week the full decision of councillors, in 40 pages, was released by the city council and pulled no punches in their loss of faith in Macs bar’s management.

Mr Macdonald said: “To call me untrustworth and unreliable is disheartening, unfair and just not true. Especially when I’m not involved in the day to day running of my club. It’s insulting to my team and my customers.”

Macs had 21 days from the date of the licensing decision to appeal to Preston Magistrates Court. No date has yet been set for the hearing.

The bar reopened after the council decision, and can continue trading up to and throughout the appeal hearing.

Queues outside the venue on A level results night Pic: Macs bar, Facebook

Mr Macdonald said they had made changes following the licensing hearing.

He said: “We have decided to put new conditions and policies in place such as an ID scanner, so even if we know your old enough we have a strict no ID no entry policy.

“My team and I are also more than grateful that all our customers have come back, it says a lot.”

What do you think of the decision to appeal by Macs? Do you visit the bar? Let us know in the comments below