London mayor orders council to drop plan to ban new pubs and bars in Soho and West End

People ‘vertically drinking’ outside the Dog and Duck pub in Soho. Photograph: fotoVoyager/Getty Images

Sadiq Khan has ordered Westminster council to scrap a policy that would ban new pubs and bars from opening in Soho and the West End of London.

This comes after the Guardian revealed the council’s new licensing policy asks pubs to stop customers from standing up while consuming beverages, which it calls “vertical drinking”. The policy is under consultation and also asks pubs to have table service rather than allowing orders at the bar.