Councils: toughen rules on licensing

Councils are urging the Government to make alcohol licensing more restrictive — but also to help with business rates for struggling small firms.

A ban on pubs being sold with restrictive covenants, which force change of use, is also suggested.

The calls were made in submissions, seen by the Morning Advertiser, as part of the Sustainable Communities Act.

Councils were asked to suggest changes to laws that would improve the quality of life in their area and several ideas relate to pubs.

In its submission for the Act, Bury urged that a public health objective be added to the Licensing Act, mirroring the approach in Scotland. Liverpool agreed, and also wanted a public health test for planning applications.

Other suggestions included having a "sufficiency" test for new licences (Darlington) and extending the notice period for temporary events notices (Islington).

The off-trade was also targeted. Kettering called for "powers to prevent supermarkets selling alcohol below a certain price floor", and Liverpool wanted to ban alcohol sales at petrol stations.

Meanwhile, Oxford wan-ted help "promoting and supporting local businesses through a more flexible business rate relief system". Waltham Forest wanted "discounts on business rates to be set by local criteria".

Similarly, Lambeth in London wanted rates to be "variable" for "those businesses that deliver social benefits".

More simply, South Gloucestershire urged that rate relief should be granted automatically, and Birmingham called for rate relief to be increased to "promote small business".

And, in a proposal that would help many pubs, South Hams District Council wanted authorities to have the right to grant rate relief for firms that earn 50% of their turnover from "selling local foods and goods".

A handful of councils asked the Government to ban restrictive covenants that force change of use when pubs are sold.

These included Darlington, which called for specific help for community pubs in one of its submissions. The council wanted "community pubs to trade on a level playing field by prohibiting irresponsible promotion of alcohol as a loss leader".

It also called for action on trade deals, saying: "The practice of many large premises of offering cheap drink promotions and bulk purchase offers is further destroying the 'local' pub."

The Local Government Association will now collate the responses and send them to Communities Secretary John Denham by the end of the year.

Peers urge tougher local licensing​

Conservative peers have tabled amendments to a separate bill on behalf of councils, to allow more local decision making in licensing matters.

The amendments to the Policing & Crime Bill would let local councillors instigate licence reviews. They would also extend the notice period for temporary events notices from 48 hours to two working days.

Viscount Bridgeman and Baroness Hanham tabled the amendments on behalf of the Local Government Association. They are to be debated in October when the Lords committee scrutinising the Bill reconvenes.

An LGA spokesman said: "We will be lobbying hard when the Lords return for the committee session."