The Battle of Westminster

Over the last two years, relations between the trade and Westminster City Council in London have been increasingly strained.

The conflict stems from the decision by the council to restrict late-night licensing in selected areas of the city centre - where it claims the large number of premises are adding to problems with noise and violence.

It is also calling for additional funding for late-night services like street cleaning and policing, which it claims are failing to cope with the increase in the late-night economy.

Licensees claim they are being unfairly blamed for the problems, when the council itself approved the existing number of licences. They also argue that restricting hours is restricting competition.

Here, thePublican.com's Michelle Perrett gives both sides a chance to argue their case.

The licensees​

When Alex Salussolia was approached to be chairman of the Westminster Licensees' Association (WLA) he was the ideal candidate. As head of Glendola Leisure, which owns the famous Irish pub Waxy O'Connors in central London, he was well-placed to understand the problems faced by operators in the borough.

The organisation was set up in March 2001 to provide a proactive voice for licensed premises in Westminster and now boasts almost 900 members, including individual operators and company-owned outlets - that's a third of all licensed premises in the borough.

It was set up as the trade felt that there was no mechanism for consulting with Westminster City Council. Council members at the WLA include Andrew Latham, chief executive of SFI, Philip Matthews of Covent Garden's Rock Garden and Karl Harrison, director of The Spot. Other members include Interpub, Urbium, Six Continents and the Albert Hall.

One of the association's most important strategies is to try and get to grips with the licensing policy in Westminster.

Westminster council claims central London is saturated with licensed premises and that public services, such as street cleaning and policing, cannot cope.

Westminster has been accused by the pub trade of attempting to put a lid on the opening of more late-night venues in the borough.

Mr Salussolia said: "If Westminster is successful in restricting licensing and stopping new licences I think the small independent and entrepreneurial operators will be forced out."

The association has set up a discussion forum between licensees and the Westminster City Council licensing team to raise these concerns. It has established a system of quarterly meetings with the head of planning and licensing, Carl Powell, to deal with individual licensees' cases and to raise policy concerns about the way in which Westminster is operating. The association has also met with Simon Milton, head of the council, to discuss its concerns.

But it still feels its relationship with the council is breaking down and that the licensed trade is being unfairly blamed for all the problems in the West End. The WLA feels that the discussions with the council are moving too slowly and that there has been little achieved in the meetings.

As far as crime and disorder is concerned Mr Salussolia also believes that the association should be able to get involved and work to solve any problems faced by central London.

"We are concerned that we are seen as the cause of the problem rather than part of the solution," he said.

He remains concerned that the views of the trade are not being taken on board by the council. "Westminster Council is not treating it as seriously as we would like," he said.

"We believe that with the business rates our members pay, the services should be better. The council needs to do its fundamental duties in terms of street cleansing and policing."

He added that members would even be willing to look at initiatives to help improve the area, including offering some extra funding - but only if Westminster Council fulfilled its current duties with regards to local services.

Westminster Council is rewriting its licensing policy following a recent court case with late-night operator Urbium and the WLA has offered to give its input in advance of the drafting.

Mr Salussolia said: "We understand the council is redrafting its licensing policy and we have not yet been approached to be involved."

The trade fears the day when local authorities take control of licensing and Mr Salussolia says he remains very concerned over the reform plans in light of the length of time and cost involved in the current late-night licensing system in the Capital.

• Following thePublican.com's interview with Simon Milton, the council has offered to involve the WLA in consultations on the draft policy.

Contact details:​Westminster Licensees Association4th FloorBedford ChambersThe PiazzaCovent GardenLondonTel: 020 8567 8735Website: www.westminsterlicensees.org

The council​

As leader of Westminster City Council, which is known in trade circles as probably the most controversial local authority in the country, Simon Milton has introduced one of the most widely criticised licensing policies to the centre of London.

It has come under fire from the pub trade for refusing to grant new licences and for restricting the hours on existing ones held by pubs and bars in key West End areas, even though operators claim they have been trading responsibly.

The council says that central London is saturated with late-night venues serving alcohol and claims that public services such as street cleaning, policing and transport can no longer support the growing late-night economy.

Mr Milton admitted that the council is to blame for the high numbers of late-night licences that exist in Westminster but wants to reassure the trade that he is not trying to revoke licences in the borough.

"We have allowed the situation to occur where there is an over-concentration of one type of use," he said.

"We are not seeking to take back licences from people that already have them. But there is a limit to the number of late-night licences that any city can support."

The council is currently rewriting its licensing policy following the loss of a recent court case brought by late-night operator Urbium. A court judge branded the policy "ambiguous" and ruled that a new policy must be redrafted after consultation with the trade. Mr Milton was unsure of the details and timing of the new policy but confirmed it is currently under consultation.

Licensing reform, which will see local authorities take over from magistrates if government proposals are approved, is likely to see Westminster take full control in 2004.

Mr Milton has said that he is not concerned about who has control of licensing but wants issues such as disorder and noise to be addressed.

"For a licensing system to work you have to look at the whole management of licences," he said.

With this in mind, the council is putting together a plan of action and talking to magistrates about current procedures in preparation for taking control of licensing.

He is also lobbying ministers for local authorities to have the ability to introduce policies adapted to local needs - something that will concern many within the trade who fear that the new system could become too politically-biased and costly for licensees.

Mr Milton says the government is misleading the trade over licensing reform. He argues that the proposed licensing transition period will not be long enough and that the government has got its proposed fee structure wrong. "The government is being dishonest with the trade over the costs of licensing," he said.

He also believes that budget restraints on councils will im