Agenda and minutes

None.

To determine any other items of business which the Chairman decides should be considered as a matter of urgency pursuant to Section 100B(4)(b) of the Local Government Act 1972.

None.

Members are asked at this stage to declare any interests that they may have in any of the following items on the agenda.  The Code of Conduct for Members requires that declarations include the nature of the interest and whether it is a disclosable pecuniary interest.

None.

The Chairman, Members of the Panel and Officers introduced themselves.

The Legal Advisor outlined the purpose of the hearing and explained the procedure for the meeting.  She confirmed with the Panel and Applicant’s Representative that they had received a copy of the agenda papers.  She reminded the Sub-Committee that the hearing was being conducted remotely via Zoom and must be conducted fairly and reasonably in line with the Applicant’s right to a fair hearing under Article 6 of the Human Rights Act 1998.  In the event of any participant leaving the hearing due to a technical issue, the hearing would not proceed until all parties were present.  She drew attention to the fact that no Responsible Authorities had objected to the application.

The Licensing Enforcement Officer presented the report, which related to an application for a new Premises Licence to which objections had been received from local residents.  The premises had been licensed previously on the basis of 24 hours, 7 days a week for all licensable activities.  The licence had been closed on 5 November 2020 due to the insolvency of the licence holder and was not transferred within the statutory period of 28 days, therefore it was necessary to apply for a new Premises Licence.  The Licensing Enforcement Officer referred to the operating schedule, mandatory and voluntary conditions.  The Police had confirmed that they were happy with the application and the additional conditions proposed by the Applicant.

The Chairman requested clarification of ‘off licence’ and ‘late night refreshment’.

The Licensing Enforcement Officer explained that ‘off licence’ meant the sale of alcohol in closed containers for customers to consume away from the premises.

Mr Green explained that there were letting rooms at the premises and a late night refreshment licence was necessary to allow the sale of hot drinks or food if required after 11 pm.  It was not intended to operate as a takeaway food business.

The Licensing Enforcement Officer confirmed that a licence for late night refreshment was necessary for any premises that wanted to serve hot food or a cup of tea or coffee after 11pm and before 5am.

Mr Green presented the case on behalf of the Applicant.  Mr Green stated that the property had traded as a public house since around 1837.  The premises licence had not been revoked, but had lapsed due to the bankruptcy of the tenants and the failure due to an administrative error to transfer the licence within 28 days.  As soon as the applicants realised the error they commenced the process of applying to re-licence the premises.  The re-application intended to replicate as closely as possible the lapsed licence, but it was important to note that the previous licence had been totally unrestricted and, having liaised with the Police, the Applicant had agreed to submit the application with the alcohol and opening hours more in keeping with other premises in the town.  Unlike the previous licence, the current application included voluntary conditions that had been discussed and agreed with  ...  view the full minutes text for item 4.