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News Article Comments : Return of "fit and proper" licence test in Scotland
Police will get more say over who can become a licensee in Scotland - with the return of the “fit and proper” test.
The right of police to comment on an application to become a licensee was scrapped in Scotland’s new Licensing Act, which goes live next year.
But Justice Minister Kenny MacAskill (pictured) has vowed to re-instate the test.
He said: “There are some people who should not be allowed to sell alcohol. The fit and proper person test gave police the right to give information to help licensing boards identify these individuals.
“I have listened to the concerns of our police officers and a number of Licensing Board members and I have decided that the fit and proper person test was a loss to the licensing system and so I will reinstate the necessary police powers.
“We need to make sure that we have responsible licensees that sell alcohol responsibly. If we are going to change Scotland’s relationship with alcohol we can’t have all manner of criminals and hoodlums allowed to s
| Author Name | Opinion | Reply |
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George Baker 03/09/2008 16:04:34  |
Now this does smack of the Scottish Justice Minister wanting his cake and eating it. I was under the impression that if an applicant satisfied the 4 criteria required to gain a Personal Licence then the application MUST be approved (i.e. there were no powers of discretion). To bring back the vague and subjective 'fit & proper' criteria would seem to be contrary to the applicant's human rights. Oh no! Keeerching for the lawyers!! This post replies to this thread |
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John Dwyer 04/09/2008 09:03:43 |
The article says "The fit and proper test was also scrapped in the current Licensing Act for England and Wales." In order to get a personal licence you have to produce a BII certificate, or similar, and provide a CRB certificate, or similar. These certificates show that you are fit and proper. If you have have convictions then the police can object to the issue of a personal licence. Even if you have a personal licence the police can object to you holding a premises licence or becoming a DPS. How has the 'fit and proper test' been scrapped? This post replies to this thread |
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| david whitcombe 04/09/2008 09:53:38 |
Please please explain why the fact that someone wishing to obtain a Personal Licence just needs to correctly tick a few boxes and be free of relevant convictions means the Fit and Proper Person Criteria still applies. When Licensing Justices considered whether an applicant was a fit and proper person to hold a Justices' Licence they were not confined to just enquiring regarding good character and qualification. Other factors could also be considered, not least of which were experience, responsibility and ability. Fresh faced 18 year olds who had decided they might like a career running a pub on the basis they had visited one once and liked it tended to be sent away to gain experience before they had thier application considered. Correctly ticking a few boxes on a exam paper might display a basic understanding of the licensing laws at the time the exam was taken, but it doesn't really provide any guarantee of a long term understanding of licensing laws let alone any indication of a persons capability of running a pub. It cannot take into account that persons day to day control capabilities, ability to employ and train responsible staff, ability to deal with customers, management skills etc etc, all of which are needed by a half decent licensee. Once upon a time pubco's used to look for these skills in people they allowed to operate thier pubs, perhaps because they knew the Courts would turn them away otherwise, but nowadays it seems that any willing applicant with a personal licence will do. Is it little wonder that the role of licensee no longer carries the social standing it once did. This post replies to this thread |
