Media Release from City of York Council Labour Group
The Coalition Government has signalled its intention to change the licensing system to enable local people and councillors to have more of a say over the granting of licenses.
One of the major proposals is to change the presumption of the Licensing Committee being in favour of an application if there is no public objection, with the council set to be a representor in its own right.
Licensing Committee Chair Dave Merrett explained:
"There are far-reaching implications from those measures contained within the Home Office's ‘Rebalancing the Licensing Act' consultation. Many of these proposals are to be welcomed, as they will shift power to the public, to the local authority and to the Police in terms of shaping the densities of licensed premises in their areas.
"The council's Licensing Officer's initial thoughts on a response are outlined in the committee papers published on the council's web site". (see below)
Councillor Dave Merrett added:
"As the Gambling and Licensing Acts Committee Chair, I'm asking members of the public and businesses to let the council know what they think of these proposed changes and the officer's report as quickly as possible. They can write or e-mail either to myself or to the council's Licensing Manager, John Lacy. The committee meets on 3rd September to discuss the council's response, as the Home Office's consultation unfortunately offers a very tight timescale for responses".
More contentious proposals include charging licensed premises the full cost of cleaning up the streets and for the extra policing required for maintaining public order, while the repealing of Alcohol Disorder Zones could also be agreed.
"I would like to hear the opinions of residents and businesses before agreeing a formal response", said Coun. Merrett. "There is much to be welcomed in this consultation but a number of the measures raise questions that are less clear cut and/or more controversial, and which need public debate."
