Agenda and draft minutes

To sign and confirm the minutes of the last meeting.

The Committee received the minutes of the meeting held on 6^th November 2018 and agreed that they be signed by the Chairman.

To receive apologies for absence and notification of substitutes (if any).

There were apologies for absence from Councillors George Cornah, Anton Dani and Judith Skinner.

To receive declarations of interests in respect of any item on the agenda.

No interests were declared.

To answer any written questions received from members of the public no later than 5 p.m. two clear working days prior to the meeting – for this meeting the deadline is 5 p.m. on Thursday 6 August 2020.

None.

A report by the Head of Regulatory Services

The Licensing and Land Charges Manager presented a report, which provided a draft revised Statement of Licensing Policy for the Committee to consider before it went out for consultation.

Under the Licensing Act 2003, every 5 years the licensing authority was required to consult on and publish a statement setting out its policy for the exercise of its functions under the Licensing Act for the sale of alcohol and the provision of regulated entertainment and late night refreshment with a view to promoting the licensing objectives. The Council’s Statement of Licensing Policy was last revised and adopted in 2015.

The draft revised Statement of Licensing Policy was attached to the report at Appendix A for Members to review and amend as they saw fit. Changes proposed by the Licensing and Land Charges Manager were highlighted in red throughout the draft.

Following consultation, a schedule of responses would be brought back to the Committee for consideration and for a final draft to be approved with a recommendation it be referred to Full Council for adoption in November.

The list of those that had to be consulted on the policy was quite extensive and the Committee would need to give their comments appropriate weight. The licensing authority would also consult all Responsible Authorities named in the Act, Elected Members and Parish Councils.

The Licensing and Land Charges Manager went through the more significant changes already highlighted in the draft. These reflected changes in legislation and guidance and strengthened the policy to address issues that had frequently arisen at hearings thereby assisting decision-making.

Members voiced agreement with specific changes highlighted in the report.  Other comments included satisfaction that the measures with respect to cumulative impact were adequate.  The prevention of illegal working of any type in licensed premises was welcomed in view of the need to closely monitor modern day slavery. A local premises had recently had its licence revoked on these exact grounds.

In answer to Members’ questions, the Licensing and Land Charges Manager explained that very few if any, early morning restriction orders had been put in place nationally because an order would apply to all premises in an area and so stifle the night-time economy. If an individual premises was causing problems in the early morning then a restriction would be put on the licence or an application for a licence would be refused. The additional wording had been put in this section in order to reflect the guidance and policies of other licensing authorities for consistency.

“Best Bar None” was an award scheme run by partnership groups that involved the Police, Fire and Rescue, Environmental Health, Licensing and so on, whereby the premises that met a particularly high standard was awarded a badge.

The section of the draft policy relating to the provision of public conveniences being open late at night was a direct lift of the wording from the Section 182 Guidance, where it gave mechanisms or suggestions that could be used to prevent cumulative impact.

A Member  ...  view the full minutes text for item 10.