Sitting in a pub with a glass of mulled wine, while loudly singing along to a Christmas song, is a much-loved tradition of the festive season.
But its days may be numbered as pub landlords must ban ‘offensive’ lyrics under new laws requiring them to take “all reasonable steps” to protect staff from third-party harassment.
The songs affected could include ‘Baby It’s Cold Outside’, which has faced criticism from the #MeToo movement, ‘Do They Know It’s Christmas?’, which has been accused of stereotyping the continent of Africa, and ‘Jingle Bells’, which is said to have ‘racist’ origins.
Under Labour’s controversial Employment Rights Bill, which became law last week, employers will have a legal duty to prevent harassment by third parties relating to a ‘protected characteristic’ such as race, religion, sexual orientation or age.
Ministers have been warned that this will result in pub landlords, as well as restaurant owners and hoteliers, being turned into the ‘banter cops’, where they are forced to police what their customers say.
Free-speech campaigners fear it could also lead to pubs banning Christmas music sing-alongs over worries their lyrics may cause offence.
Toby Young, general secretary of the Free Speech Union, said he had previously warned that the ‘banter ban’ would lead to the “policing of harmless fun in pubs, bars and restaurants, giving the scolds and finger-waggers another pretext to stop people enjoying themselves”.
He added: “The Government didn’t listen, insisting we were being alarmist, but a ban on Christmas music and carol singing will be the least of it. Prepare to live in a country in which every hospitality venue is a micro-managed ‘safe space’, overseen by lanyard-wearing banter bouncers. Welcome to Starmer’s Britain.”...<<<Read More>>>...
