THE style magazines have discovered Liverpool once again. It seems as though every quality glossy has found a reason to feature the European Capital of Culture recently, either in its fashion pages or as a cool destination for a trendy city break.

The growing number of high-end nightclubs and bars it boasts, coupled with the celebrities who either make their home in the city or visit to experience the Liverpool vibe, have been partly responsible for this.

So it is sad that one of the latest additions to Liverpool’s nightlife has, according to police, become a meeting place for organised criminals.

The trendy H Bar – one of Liverpool’s most celebrity-studded venues – has been temporarily closed after Merseyside Police made representations to the city’s licensing committee.

The force’s submission highlighted the criminal backgrounds of some of the bar’s clientele, in addition to a double stabbing there this week.

It is a sad setback for the former Atomic Kitten singer; she made a considered business decision in moving into the hospitality trade, opening a restaurant in the Metquarter, and H Bar, on Victoria Street, and deserves better than for her premises to become a magnet for criminal lowlife.

H Bar will appeal the decision tomorrow, and the outcome of that hearing will determine whether it must remain closed until October 1 while a full licence review is conducted.

It is to be hoped that Hamilton is successful in the appeal, as it seems that a hard but valuable lesson has been learned by owner and management.

Mistakes have been made – attempting to clean up a crime scene before police have arrived is hardly a shining example of best practice – but extending the closure could cause irreparable damage to the venue’s reputation.

Making an example of H Bar is not necessarily in the best interests of either the business, or the image of Liverpool’s clubland.