Remember personal licence date

With all the publicity about 6 August as the cut-off date for 'grandfather rights for existing premises, it may be missed that it is also the cut-off date for personal licence applications.

This came home to me the other day when chatting to the personnel manager for an operating company. He has move- ments in his estate on a regular basis, yet he sees some inconsistency ahead if he tries to install a new manager (who has not yet obtained a personal licence) between August and November.

It is not just managed estates that may have problems. As I have pointed out before, there are still some incurably optimistic ex-tenants and those looking for a new challenge who do not realise that the deadline is fast approaching.

The plain fact is that the ability to 'convert an existing justices' licence to a new personal licence ends on 6 August as well. After that date, if you apply for conversion then technically the licensing authority is entitled to refuse.

Certainly, if you are joined on to a licence by way of transfer after 6 August, and have not yet obtained your personal licence, you do not have grandfather rights. You will need to go through the complete process of qualification, which will involve a criminal record check and passing one of the new qualifying exams.

Remember that those who are on protection orders or interim authorities are not qualified, because their names are not on the justices' licence. They, too, will need to take the new test.

New guidelines have been issued to licensing justices by the Justices' Clerks' Society on how they should deal with applicants for licences during transition. The same guidance will, of course, apply to their considerations after 6 August, but the person granted the licence will only be qualified to sell alcohol up to the second appointed day. After that date, without a new-style personal licence, he can work in licensed premises, but he cannot be a designated premises supervisor nor can he authorise sales.

Because of the regular movement of personnel in the licensed trade, there could be several thousand people who are going on to licences this summer and autumn. Many of them will find that they do, indeed, have a short-term licence and will need to swot up for their new National Certificate for Personal Licence Holders or its equivalent.