Please sign the online petition at

http://www.petitiononline.com/llbtw/petition.html

which states:

To: Walkabout pubs and Associate Companies.

Two Royal Marines were refused entry to the Walkabout bar in Liverpool’s city centre because they were in uniform, having just attended the funeral of a colleague killed in Iraq on Remembrance Sunday.

A spokesman for Walkabout gave this spurious statement:
"As a responsible bar operator, we have a strict policy of refusing entry to anyone believed to be aggressive.
"Furthermore, Walkabout in Liverpool has a strict policy of refusing entry to anyone in uniform due to previous issues with uniformed customers. These policies are designed solely to increase the safety and comfort of all our customers.
"Two of the group were in uniform and door-staff believed that other members of the group were behaving aggressively, so they were refused admission."

This unpatriotic nonsense needs to be confronted and we the undersigned will pledge to boycott all pubs and inns in the Walkabout chain and will also boycott its associate companies, Regent Inns and Jongleurs unless a statement is released apologising to the soldiers involved and a change in the rules which forbid serving members of HM’s Armed Forces entering their premises wearing the uniform of HM’s Armed Forces.


Sincerely,

The Undersigned


Thanks in advance.

Sorry, forgot to mention - please pass the petition link on, especially to those serving, wherever they may be.

Tah.

As the sponsor of this petition, I must advise you that the Walkabout chain have issued an apology on their website which also states a change of policy regarding entry for those wearing uniforms. Consequently, the petition is now closed and, although I did not get a chance to present it to the Company, I would thank you all for the interest and comments you have given. Hey, who knows, maybe they got wind of it. Cheers m' Dears.

http://www.walkabout.eu.com/12uniformed.html

CHANGE OF POLICY REGARDING UNIFORMED PERSONNEL

In light of a regrettable incident that occurred in Liverpool last week when two Royal Marines were not allowed into the bar, we wanted to clarify our policy:

There is no national policy banning uniformed service personnel. There was a non-uniform policy in Liverpool due to three incidents in the last six months where the safety of uniformed personnel was compromised. However, further to recent feedback we have revised this policy and the uniform ban in Liverpool has been lifted, bringing it in-line with the rest of our bars.

Furthermore, we welcome the group of marines that were turned away back to the bar for a free lunch in full uniform.

We deeply regret that this incident has caused upset to Cpl Nowak’s family, friends and comrades and want to re-iterate that all service personal are welcome at all of our bars.

Hi Steve,

Fantastic news, it just goes to show you can make a difference! With the rush to deal with the Xmas parcels I hadn't had chance to add the petition to the website but delighted now that it's not necessary to do so.

Whilst Walkabout were very wrong not to admit the two Royal Marines at least they've had the decency to publicly apologise and hopefully there'll be no further issues in the future.

Well done, you too should be proud of yourself for achieving this result!

Karen

Hi Steve,
NICE ONE & WELL DONE!!

I am afraid I cannot avoid commenting....I may be 'a siggy's mum' but our Royal Marines need our full support in light of the unbelievable and unacceptable announcements re the deployment bonuses. We all have a duty to lobby for a reversal of this decision forthwith! Our Marines and others are dying for this country and freedom in general. This is the final insult as far as I am concerned. It is also a bit ironic that in a blaze of publicity yesterday the MoD patted themselves on the back for sending out "...a Christmas box with gifts and treats to deployed personnel..." What a pity it isn't going to contain the rightful reward for RMs!!
God Bless and keep them all safe.
Regards
Agnes
Agnes

Thanks for the comments. I have just received an email from a Director of the pub chain who indicated to me that it was the petition which caused their u-turn.

Agnes, why don't you use the same tool I did to get your message across re the bonuses.
Set up an online petition and spread the word. I went to several regimental sites, including the Royal Marines Assoc site plus others, and brought the petition to their attention.
If you need help with this or drafting the petition, give me a shout here.

Cheers.

Hi Steve,
Can I leave this task in your capable hands and I will assist. I am in the middle of the Christmas Parcels transfer to theatre so things are pretty hectic and I am conscious that I have a site update to prepare for that too.

Kind Regards
Agnes

Im a Yank. You British people should be ashamed of yourselves treating your brave servicemen that way. What happened? Did the bunch of you over there in Britain lose your balls or something!