Nottingham approves late-night levy

The proposals were rubber-stamped at a full council meeting this afternoon [14 July], following recommendations from the licensing committee last month.

It means the city’s 260 premises which are licensed to sell alcohol between 00:01 and 06:00 will have to pay a fee from 1 November 2014. Members of the city’s Business Improvement District (BID) will be exempt.

The levy depends on the rateable value of the affected premises, and ranges from £299 to £4,440 a year.

Income​

The council has predicted the levy will raise about £200,000 a year, to contribute towards the estimated £1.5m annual costs of policing and managing alcohol-related activities between midnight and 6am. The estimated income allows for the scenario that around a fifth of premises that sell alcohol after midnight will vary their licence to avoid the charge, and excludes the exempted BID members.

The authority plans to use the new fund to pay for extra police officers and community protection officers patrolling the city’s streets at night.

Nottingham City Council leader Jon Collins said: “Nottingham is a very popular night-time destination and we want to make sure that people continue to choose to come here and are able to enjoy a safe night out when they do.

“The funds generated through a late-night levy mean that licensed premises will add to the range of activities currently funded by the public purse that have seen the city repeatedly awarded Purple Flag status in recent years, recognising Nottingham as a safe and enjoyable night out.

“We never expected the levy to be popular in the licensed trade – even though it is a modest fee which no viable business will struggle to meet - but our consultation helped us consider other aspects of implementing a levy and the exemption for BID members is evidence of that.”