Latest Lords Bill vote may give residents more say
Licensing reform faces a further setback following a move which could give residents more power.
Peers in the House of Lords have agreed that local authorities should be given more control to protect residents and the surrounding environment from the impact of later licensing hours.
It is feared that this will give undue influence to residents' views and will enable licensing authorities to further restrict licensing by reducing hours or the number of premises in the area. If the Lord's views are supported by the House of Commons when it debates the bill in April, it could mean disaster for the trade.
Tory peer Baroness Buscombe, who put forward the amendment, said: "It responds to what I call the residents' lobby - those who fear the effect of increased trading hours in the licensed premises in their area."
The trade already fears local authority control will lead to politically-biased decisions and more bureaucracy. This latest move is set to fuel concerns.
Caroline Nodder, spokeswoman for the British Institute of Innkeeping, said: "It's vital that the views of residents are balanced by those of the trade and licensees. The fear is that if it does go through, local authorities could use it to place restrictions on pubs in the name of protecting residents.
"The BII and other trade organisations are going through all the fine details and we will be registering our opinions with the Department for Culture Media and Sport."
Eddie Gershon, spokesman for JD Wetherspoon, said: "Residents in any area already have the right to appeal against new licences and longer hours and any company has to go through the legal channels so residents will always be informed.
"Giving even more support to residents at the cost of responsible pub operators seems unjust and if the law was to change we feel we should have the right to be consulted."
The British Beer & Pub Association is also concerned but spokeswoman Karen Kelshaw said: "We are going to sit down and look at the amendment to see whether it is simply a change of wording or a change of interpretation."
Lords vote for a central authority
Licensees could find themselves monitored by a central authority following the latest vote in the House of Lords. Peers voted last week by 143 to 111 for an amendment to the Licensing Bill to create a central authority to vet licensees' applications.
The advantage of the system would be less bureaucracy and would save licensees transferring their personal licences between local authorities.
But the government and members of the trade have been opposed to the move claiming that it would be too expensive and impractical to implement.
The BBPA's Karen Kelshaw said: "There are not enough details on how a central authority would work or be funded. If it does get approved it could delay the bill going through Parliament."
Related articles:
Lords vote to keep live music out of local authority control (25 February 2003)
