Fury as 'Crooked House' pub laws are talked out by Labour MPs

A Black Country MP has reacted angrily after his ‘Crooked House Bill’ to protect heritage pubs was ‘talked out’ without being put to the vote.

Mike Wood’s Heritage Public Houses Bill ran out of time ahead of its second reading in the House of Commons today (Friday) after a slew of Labour MPs stood up to explain why it was not necessary.

After five-and-a-half hours of debate, the Bill reached a 2.30pm cut-off point without a vote taking place, meaning it is now unlikely to become law.

The Campaign for Real Ale (Camra) branded the attempts to block the law as an ‘absolute disgrace’.

Mr Wood, MP for Kingswinford and South Staffordshire, said his proposed Bill would have given pubs in England a “legal shield” against redevelopment and could have kept them in community hands.

It was tabled in response to the arson attack and subsequent unlawful demolition of the world-famous Crooked House pub at Himley, near Dudley, in 2023.

Mr Wood said Labour’s failure to support the Bill demonstrated that Prime Minister Andy Burnham’s professed support for the pub trade was superficial.

“Andy Burnham talks a good game on pubs, but when push comes to shove, he failed at the first hurdle.

“The ironic thing is we had Labour MP after Labour MP talking about their favourite heritage pubs, but most of those pubs have no more protection than the Crooked House as a result of them stopping these laws.”

Mr Wood said he believed that the MPs had blocked his Bill for purely party political purposes.

“It would be a tragedy if another community was to go through the same thing as we did with the Crooked House while we were waiting for the Government to get its act together.”

Mr Wood’s Bill aimed to prevent pubs facing the same fate as the 258-year-old Crooked House, which is in Mr Wood’s constituency.

Councils would have been required to put together a list of heritage pubs, and given communities the chance to buy pubs when they are listed for sale, during an automatic legal pause period.

This would be similar to the Asset of Community Value (ACV) scheme, but would include a longer period to do so, and would not require community groups to get pubs listed beforehand.

Pubs would also have been given protections from redevelopment similar to listed buildings with Historic England.

Camra’s national planning policy adviser Paul Ainsworth said: “It’s an absolute disgrace that the Government are blocking Mike Wood’s Heritage Pubs Bill.

“This legislation would have added extra protections in the planning system to protect the most iconic and historically significant pubs in the UK.

“It’s been three years since the demolition of the iconic Crooked House in Himley, and we can’t allow losses of any further heritage pubs in such circumstances.

“Heritage and historic pubs clearly need protection from unscrupulous developers, and the Government must put laws in place to preserve our heritage and protect pubs from being converted or demolished against the wishes of local communities.

“If the Government aren’t supporting this change in the law they must commit to strengthen the planning system for pubs.

“Unlimited fines for those illegally demolishing a pub isn’t enough – the law must require that pubs are rebuilt brick by brick in addition to fines.”

As well as having the support of Camra, it was also backed by the Countryside Alliance.

Introducing the private members’ Bill on Friday, Mr Wood said MPs should not hide behind ‘procedural excuses’ to ‘leave the door wide open for the next historic pub to be bulldozed on a Sunday night’.

Mr Wood added: “Nothing we do today can undo the heartbreak felt across my constituency and the wider region when the Crooked House fell, but by passing this Bill we can ensure that its enduring legacy is a legal shield that protects every beloved historic pub across England for generations to come.”

Mr Wood said pubs were the ‘social glue’ that binds communities together.

He added: “Yet all too often, the planning system still treats these irreplaceable institutions as nothing more than convenient plots of land waiting to be cleared for speculative development.

“We cannot pretend this is an abstract theoretical debate. We know the brutal reality because we saw it happen before our very own eyes in Himley, which I now have the honour of representing here in Parliament.”

The Crooked House was known as Britain’s wonkiest pub, caused by mining subsidence. It created an optical illusion which made glasses and coins appear to roll uphill.

Six people were arrested during the investigation on suspicion of arson-related offences. All have since been released.

Staffordshire Police has submitted a file of evidence to the Crown Prosecution Service about the fire and demolition in August 2023. No charges have been made.

Staffordshire Council has ordered the pub to be rebuilt brick by brick. However, owner A T E Farms Ltd lodged an appeal, and the hearing was postponed until criminal investigations had been completed.

Labour MP Sarah Hall said she believed existing protections were already sufficient through the Asset of Community Value scheme and the National Planning Policy Framework

She said: “The current policies already act as an important safeguard. So creating another legal requirement will not necessarily produce a better practical outcome.”