SBPA speaks out over door worker fee
The Scottish Beer & Pub Association (SBPA) has responded "with dismay" to news the Scottish Executive has given the green light to a 30 per cent hike in Security Industry Authority (SIA) fees.
The SBPA wrote several weeks ago to the Scottish Executive's Justice Minister, Cathy Jamieson MSP, expressing concerns about plans to increase the fees in Scotland, despite poor performance by the SIA in hitting its revenue targets. The SIA grants licences for door supervisors and anyone working in a designated security role. Failure to have a licence could mean a fee of up to £5,000 or up to six months in prison. The licence will increase from £190.00 to £245.00 at the same time as England and Wales.
The new law means the SIA will become responsible for licensing the private security industry across the whole of Great Britain, creating one security regulator and one set of security licences.
The reply from the Scottish Executive said: "The SIA is required to be self funding through its revenue raising activities, primarily licensing.
"The fee is, therefore, set at a level to reflect the full cost of the application process, compliance and investigation activities as well as the direct running costs of the Authority.
"The increased fee takes into account inflation over the last three years and the next two years along with the latest estimates of the SIA's expenditure and the licensable population. In future the fee will be reviewed annually to ensure that the SIA is able to move forward on a self funding basis."
Patrick Browne, chief executive of the SBPA, said: "The reply from the Scottish Executive appears to wash it hands of the SIA fee increase in Scotland and is unwilling or unable to offer any clarity about why the licensed industry in Scotland should be liable for a very steep increase in the SIA charges before the SIA regime has even been introduced.
"I hope this isn't the first sign that the industry in Scotland will experience some of the problems in having the SIA introduced north of the border that the industry experienced in the rest of the UK."
