A PUB landlady has won a court battle which had threatened her livelihood, despite police claims that she had a drink problem and was not fit to run the premises.

Hyndburn licensing magistrates granted Marilyn Allder a permanent transfer of the licence for the Nag's Head, in Blackburn Road, Accrington.

Her solicitor Bill Rawstron said the court had heard nothing but highly irrelevant innuendo, and that Mrs Allder was trying to clean up the pub and get rid of undesirables.

Granting the transfer, bench chairman Roy Gaskell added that if any future incidents were reported to the police then action would be taken accordingly.

Licensing sergeant Brian Hopwood said that a month after Mrs Allder was granted a temporary licence in June, police visited the Nag's Head and found her former boyfriend Alan Nichol sitting on the pavement outside shortly before 2am, covered in blood from a head wound. Sergeant Paul Withers said that Mrs Allder was drunk and as a result of her behaviour and her refusal to co-operate with his inquiries he arrested her for breach of the peace, although she was released almost immediately from the police station.

The court also heard that Mrs Allder had been bound over to keep the peace in August 1996 for a public order offence.

Mr Rawstron said Mrs Allder had not misled police when they made inquiries about her criminal record, as a bind over was not a criminal conviction.

Mrs Allder, 46, said that when police visited the pub on July 11 she had co-operated with police but was upset and the last thing she wanted was people rummaging through her private quarters.

Mr Rawstron said Mrs Allder no longer had anything to do with Mr Nichol.

She had held responsible secretarial and travel industry jobs, had experience in the licensed trade and was due to sit an exam on licensing rules and regulations tomorrow after paying £125 to go on an inn keeping course.

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