An angry bar owner threatened with closure by the Royal Borough says he is a victim of a campaign of victimisation.

Sal Ladha is the proprietor of the Suede Bar and Lounge in Windsor High Street, which he has run since 2017.

Mr Ladha says the trouble started a year ago when 'malicious complaints' began being made to the Royal Borough about noise levels, which proved to unfounded when council officials visited.

He said he was also visited by a trading standards team after a complaint was made that he was selling 'fake alcohol' - a complaint that proved to be false.

He said harassment had also included phone calls from an unknown number warning him and his staff that they would be taught a lesson if they opened on New Year's Eve.

Now Mr Ladha says has received a double blow - in the form of a notice from the Royal Borough ordering him to 'cease the use of the first floor of the premises as a drinking establishment and nightclub'.

The notice describes it as 'a nightclub until the early hours of the morning which is an incongruous use that fails to preserve or enhance the character of the Windsor Conservation area or conserve the character of the listed building'.

To add to his woes the council is also demanding he repaint the building to remedy listed status infringements.

Mr Ladha plans to appeal and says that the council's claims of unsuitability are unfair, as there are numerous bars in the immediate vicinity.

He also disputes it is a 'nightclub', saying: "It is a Champagne cocktail bar aimed at people over 30. A nightclub charges entry and has a large dance floor which we don't.

"The bar is not even recognisable as a bar. It has no bright lights, it does not have signage outside, nor does it have anything indicating it is a venue for drinks. It has the smartest, suited and booted politest door staff in all of Windsor who when approached by members of the public tell them what is upstairs before one of them escorts them in."

He says the listed building 'infringements' had been done before he took over.

A statement from the Royal Borough said: "The Two Notices were issued following an extensive enforcement investigation."