These pubs could open when they liked for as long as they liked. Alcohol could be sold to anyone, of any age. Therefore many men, women and children developed alcohol problems.  As a result of these problems, Scotland took action and now has some of the strictest licensing laws in the UK.

The 1853 Forbes Mackenzie Act led to 11pm closing times for pubs, and the law prevented pubs from opening on a Sunday. The word “steaming” is used by many to describe the feeling of being drunk. The only place people could purchase alcohol legally on a Sunday in Glasgow was on the steam boats which cruised the River Clyde. This is where the phrase steaming came from.