Scots reform chaos 'costs £4k per pub'

A tenanted pubco in Scotland has paid out more than £200,000 to prepare for licensing reform — that's £4,000 per pub.

Craig Bruce, director of Rosemount Taverns, which operates 51 tenanted pubs, called the new Scottish Licensing Act a "shambles".

He said: "It's been a complete waste of money except that it has allowed us to continue trading."

Bruce said the £4,000 cost for each pub could be broken down into £1,500 in legal fees, £1,000-£1,300 payable to local authorities, £500 in architects' fees for drawings, and at least £200 in training for personal licence holders, plus extras.

Bruce added that even now, 10 days into the new regime, fewer than 10% of his estate had received licences.

"In some cases we know they've been granted by the boards, but in two cases in North Lanarkshire, they haven't even been heard by the board yet." However, these were permitted to trade in the interim period.

The company prepared its applications months ahead of deadline, but Bruce said in some cases local authorities had "moved the goalposts". For example changing the earliest trading hours allowed on Sundays.

Uncertainty reigns over drinks promotions​

Leading Scottish licensing lawyer Andrew Thomson, who has handled over 300 applications across Scotland, said there is still a lot of uncertainty over which promotions will comply with new legislation.

"There is a lot of leeway to find loopholes and some are trying already. We won't really find out what works until licensing standards officers come around. They will be the arbiters."

He also branded annual top-up fees of between £220-£500 a "stealth tax". These are being billed to licensees now and are payable by 1 October. "They are supposed to allow the new system to be self-financing," he added. But coming in the wake of huge licensing bills, he said they left many hosts reeling.