Magistrates have turned down the first legal challenge launched against late drinking licences in Brighton and Hove - although the landlord will have to put a swear box on his bar.

Neighbours, who claimed the seven-day-a-week 3am licence at The Iron Duke had made their lives a misery, described the decision as ludicrous.

Computer consultant Angus Malcolm, 30, who lives opposite the pub and brought the challenge, said: "The swear box thing is surely a joke. It's something teachers do at primary school.

"Can you honestly imagine the landlord chasing loud drunks up the street shaking a swear box?"

The case is sure to exacerbate concerns about the city council's record for granting virtually all late licence applications.

Of about 400 applications in Brighton and Hove, only five have been turned down. Only one of those was because of concerns about rowdiness.

Earlier this month, Police revealed low-level violent crime had increased by 46 per cent - or 406 more incidents - since the new legislation came into force last autumn.

Brighton magistrates said the city council was too strict and secretive in its criteria for judging whether objections to licence applications were relevant.

In the case of the Iron Duke, in Waterloo Street, Hove, the authority rejected 15 letters of complaint.

In contrast, Westminster City Council in London has a policy of rejecting all late applications near residential areas unless there are overwhelming reasons in favour.

Mr Malcolm told the court he was "tortured" by drunk Iron Duke customers shouting, urinating and throwing beer glasses into the road in the early hours.

But magistrates ruled he did not present a case in the four-day hearing which gave them good reason to reduce the opening hours.

They said that while there was a problem with crime and disorder in Waterloo Street it could not be directly attributed to the Iron Duke.

But The Argus contacted other residents in the area who backed up Mr Malcolm's claims.

His neighbour Bill Cowell, 68, said: "The problem is when people leave the pubs. I am woken up by people passing at 2am or 3am.

"They are happy, they are not being unpleasant, but they are being noisy."

Mr Cowell, who is retired, said he and his neighbours were surrounded by a number of pubs, all within 300 yards.

He said: "If people want to drink late at night they should go to central Brighton where the clubs are and drink there."

Mr Malcolm has been ordered to pay £5,000 towards the cost of the case.

He said: "How they can consider a 3am licence for a pub in a heavily-populated area is reasonable defies belief."

Magistrates ordered the pub to install CCTV inside and outside as a deterrent to rowdy behaviour and take "strenuous efforts" to prevent customers from shouting and swearing loudly within 50m of the premises.

They ordered the landlord to install a swear box, put up notices asking customers to leave quietly and to only admit invited friends after midnight.

Landlord Peter Lindars, who took over in February, said: "We feel justice has been done. I think a lot of the court issues were motivated by personal issues between Mr Malcolm and the previous licensee.

"I live in this area and there's no way I would do anything other than run this place professionally and with respect for our neighbours.

"We have had no complaints to the police and any neighbours who do have any issues are encouraged to come and talk to me personally. I assure them I'll put in place measures to ensure they are not disturbed."

Brighton and Hove Council declined to comment.