Instead, the Government is expected to amend licensing guidance and advise local licensing authorities to accept a minor variation when adding off-sales to a premises licence permanently.
According to licensing law specialists PopplestonAllen, the outcome of Home Office consultation on ‘Alcohol in licensed pavement areas’ is due to be published in the next few days.
The consultation, which ran from May until July this year, considered making it easier for hospitality businesses to sell alcohol in pavement areas.
Consider options
During the pandemic, the Government passed regulations allowing licensed premises to sell alcohol for takeaway, delivery and to drink in pavement areas, without making a formal application to vary their premises licence.
These regulations are due to expire at the end of March 2025, and the consultation was published so the Government could consider options to make it easier for the hospitality industry to sell alcohol to customers seated in outside areas.
The consultation received 67 responses, from licensing authorities, trade organisations, residents’ organisations and members of the public.
Most of the responses did not support the Government’s options to make it easier for the hospitality industry to sell alcohol for pavement areas, and therefore on 31 March those operators who have relied upon the easement in recent years will no longer be able to do so.
No consensus
Dame Diana Johnson, the minister of state for policing, fire and crime prevention, said in the House of Commons: “While the Government must accept the results of the consultation exercise conducted under the previous administration, we are disappointed that there was not a consensus in favour of retaining an easement from which many pubs and pubgoers have benefited, and which supports our objectives both to promote the growth of the UK economy, and specifically to support the nation’s pub trade.”
A BBPA spokesperson said: “On behalf of our members, who account for approximately 20,000 pubs across the UK, we supported options that would have made the temporary easement permanent, so we are incredibly disappointed at Government’s decision.
“We have seen no evidence that this easement has created any widespread issues since it was introduced, instead it helped to boost trade for pubs and therefore the economy as a whole, so this move will layer yet more cost and administrative burdens on pubs and local authorities.
“We would urge the Prime Minister to reconsider the impact of this move because it will undermine their growth mission and create more red tape.”
