Council warns Glastonbury it may limit amount of alcohol revellers can take into site to cut 'nuisance' in local area

[Yoghurt on a Stick]

Not sure if this has been posted before. Apologies if it has. 

 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-7885811/Council-warns-Glastonbury-limit-alcohol-festival-goers-in.html

[kalifire]

Copied and pasted from the Daily Fail, so you don't have to click.

Quote

Council bosses have warned Glastonbury Festival it may limit the amount of alcohol people can take in.

The warning has been made as part of a wide-ranging report into last year's event that has been published by Mendip District Council. 

It makes several recommendations on areas of improvement - including cleaning the toilets more often.

The current festival rules state that you can bring your own alcohol into the event.

However amounts considered 'beyond reasonable personal use' will be confiscated at the gate as you enter the event. 

The report said the iconic festival had been generally 'well planned and managed' in 2019.

But it added that there were nine areas which needed attention for 2020 - including a closer look at alcohol and the toilets. 

The document, published by the local authority, has floated a potential limit to the amount of drink people can bring in for personal use at subsequent festivals.

Funny pictures of revellers using ingenious contraptions to carry crates of alcohol onto the site appear each year.

But those could become a thing of the past to ensure the council provides a 'safe event'.

Claire Malcolmson, of the council, said: 'The Glastonbury Festival has a worldwide reputation and as such it means that we have a huge responsibility in ensuring that it undertakes its statutory duties.

'The purpose of the licence, the licensing objectives and other legislation is to ensure event organisers provide a safe event whilst minimising disruption and nuisance to the local community.'

The report also recommended that the site's toilets need to be serviced and cleaned more frequently.

It added that compost loos should be provided with 'utensils' to allow compost to be scooped when needed.

More work is also needed to prevent 'cross-contamination' between drinking water taps and toilets, it said.

The site hosts thousands of toilets each year, varying from portable loos to the traditional 'long drop'.

The other areas of improvement highlighted in the report include food hygiene and safety, noise complaints, security and transport.

The council made a number of proposed changes in 2017 which were then implemented by the festival for 2019.

No event was held in 2018 to allow for the farm site to recover.

However, organisers are yet to comment on the latest findings, published last week on Thursday. 

This year's festival - which is now the world's largest - will be held between June 24 and 28. Tickets sold out in just half an hour.

Paul McCartney and Taylor Swift are the only two headliners to have confirmed so far.

On the Glastonbury website it says: 'If you’re bringing your own alcohol to the Festival, remember that amounts considered beyond reasonable personal use will be confiscated at the gate.'

 

[Rubber Soldier]

Does this “issue” not come up every year? 

[danbailey80]

Large groups of mates will just spread it out amongst each other rather then getting one bloke to push everyone's on one trailor.

 

[eFestivals]

2 hours ago, Rubber Soldier said:

Does this “issue” not come up every year? 

it's coming up more and more, and one day the council will force it on Glasto.  

[Rubber Soldier]

 

23 minutes ago, eFestivals said:

it's coming up more and more, and one day the council will force it on Glasto.  

How would even be enforceable? Who would enforce it? The gate search teams? The queues are already massive, how long would it take if they’re counting how many cans each person has?
 

To me alcohol consumption isn’t an issue at the festival. You very rarely see more than odd person who’s making an nuisance of themselves due to overindulgence. It seems a strange thing for the council to focus on. What do they think it’ll actually achieve? 

[WestCountryGirl]

I'm sure someone noted in a similar thread recently that the 'nuisance' in the local area during festival time, are the people who descend on the area without Glastonbury tickets and when they can't get in, proceed to make a nuisance. I could be missing the point somewhere, but how does limiting the amount of alcohol that can be taken in to the festival solve that problem?

Really it's nether here nor there for me, as I'm not much of a drinker and mainly get by on a cider or two each day straight from the bars.

Edited January 15, 2020 by WestCountryGirl

[DareToDibble]

I can't understand how they can say the reason they may limit it is to cut nuisance in the local area. A huge majority of people will stay on site from when they arrive, regardless of how much alcohol they have.

How does the amount of alcohol being consumed on site make a difference to outside the festival?

EDIT: Unless they mean things like peeing on the land. Although I reckon the people that do that would do it sober or drunk.

Edited January 15, 2020 by DareToDibble

[Madyaker]

I wouldn’t worry about it. Plenty of other festivals impose a limit and it’s always easy to get around because it’s pretty much impossible to control. It’s a 5 day festival so the limit would have to be pretty big. 

[SwedgeAntilles]

21 minutes ago, DareToDibble said:

EDIT: Unless they mean things like peeing on the land. Although I reckon the people that do that would do it sober or drunk.

Dunno about that, pretty sure you could draw a direct correlation between volume of alcohol consumed and desperation to pee/willingness (due to reduced inhibitions) to be a dick about it 

[eFestivals]

1 hour ago, Rubber Soldier said:

How would even be enforceable? Who would enforce it? 

it would be a licence condition, and the festival would be required to enforce it.

It's happened to plenty of other festivals.

[MaxPower]

14 minutes ago, eFestivals said:

it would be a licence condition, and the festival would be required to enforce it.

It's happened to plenty of other festivals.

I think he meant at the gate. Security enforcing such a rule for at a festival the size of Glastonbury would be a huge logistical undertaking.

[grilladelphia]

limiting/prohibiting spirits is one thing I was thinking may happen, seems like Glastonbury is the only festival I can think of that still allows them brought in

[stuie]

5 minutes ago, grilladelphia said:

limiting/prohibiting spirits is one thing I was thinking may happen, seems like Glastonbury is the only festival I can think of that still allows them brought in

It's pretty easy to stash a (non glass) bottle somewhere and get it in undetected though.

 

[eFestivals]

13 minutes ago, MaxPower said:

I think he meant at the gate. Security enforcing such a rule for at a festival the size of Glastonbury would be a huge logistical undertaking.

all of the festival is a huge logistical undertaking.

And proportionally, it's no more of an undertaking than it is for all of the other fests which have limits.

[Filthy]

5 hours ago, kalifire said:

'The Glastonbury Festival has a worldwide reputation and as such it means that we have a huge responsibility in ensuring that it undertakes its statutory duties.

'The purpose of the licence, the licensing objectives and other legislation is to ensure event organisers provide a safe event whilst minimising disruption and nuisance to the local community.'

I don't understand where in this statement it mentions limits? this might just be saying that the license currently "minimises disruption and nuicance"

[The Spandex Warrior]

At the last Bestival (RIP) they had a booze limit which was being enforced with fairly strict checks on everyone (not just random spot checks) at the gate. Can't remember exactly what the limits were, but I do remember that it took bloody ages to get in.

[Memory Man]

in my exprience with festivals that do have limits, you are generally checked as normal and if you're not taking the piss they are usually fine. it doesnt get to the point of counting cans.

also they physically cannot search every person so you sometimes get checked and sometimes dont.

it depends what type of event you're going to but in my example of lost village (young crowd and dance focused) the security generally searched those who look more dodgy and left those that didnt (don't want to open a can of worms with this statement but in my experience security use profiling a lot). plus at that type of event theyre also looking for drugs not just your booze limit. 

in fact theyre often most concerned that you dont have glass.

In summary i can see glastonbury having this forced on them at some point but i can't see it being enforced all that closely. it is for the most part not enforceable down to the exact amount of booze to the can but is generally enforceable in that you dont bring absolutely loads in.

lots of fests also only allow you booze in on the first run. i can imagine this being easily enforceable as once youre in you have to get a pass out to go back out so they *could* say no booze at all on pass out entries. it would mark the end of people queing, putting their tent up, and going back for the rest of their stuff.

Edited January 15, 2020 by Memory Man

[grilladelphia]

55 minutes ago, stuie said:

It's pretty easy to stash a (non glass) bottle somewhere and get it in undetected though.

 

Yeah true, but I've got enough to stash without having to worry about spirits!...

[SwedgeAntilles]

Boris' Britain.

[DeanoL]

1 hour ago, eFestivals said:

all of the festival is a huge logistical undertaking.

And proportionally, it's no more of an undertaking than it is for all of the other fests which have limits.

Most festivals don't have the open structure of Glastonbury though. Or things like Worthy View or Campervans to deal with. 

[incident]

2 minutes ago, DeanoL said:

Most festivals don't have the open structure of Glastonbury though. Or things like Worthy View or Campervans to deal with. 

Boomtown has pretty much the same structure you're talking about (on a much smaller scale of course), and still manages to be just about the most restrictive festival in terms of bringing in your own alcohol.

[eFestivals]

2 hours ago, DeanoL said:

Most festivals don't have the open structure of Glastonbury though. Or things like Worthy View or Campervans to deal with. 

most festivals have a bigger proportion of day visitors and therefore more alcohol checks at the gate than Glasto has from the off-site camping elements.

[Johnnyseven]

4 hours ago, DareToDibble said:

I can't understand how they can say the reason they may limit it is to cut nuisance in the local area. A huge majority of people will stay on site from when they arrive, regardless of how much alcohol they have.

How does the amount of alcohol being consumed on site make a difference to outside the festival?

EDIT: Unless they mean things like peeing on the land. Although I reckon the people that do that would do it sober or drunk.

The Mail have taken two seperate points from the Mendip District Council report and linked them when they were not linked in the report. The report said that there were issues with groups of people causing nuisance in local areas due to not being able to access the festival site (apparently due to the EPO introduction), they also said they thought that there should be a limit put on how much alcohol people could bring in. Two seperate points which the Mail has connected to create an exaggerated headline.  

[Ayrshire Chris]

The daily mail? Tomorrow’s exclusive, Megan and Harry are in the resale club after Queen cancels their hospitality tickets