Agenda and draft minutes

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RESOLVED

·         That the Chair’s announcement regarding the filming of the meeting for live or subsequent broadcast be noted.

Apologies for absence were received from Cllr Mitchell for whom Cllr J Mann substituted.

It being a special meeting of the Sub Committee, under Part Four, Section B, Paragraph 17, of the Council’s Constitution, no other business was to be considered.

RESOLVED

·         That the procedure be noted.

To consider an application for a premises licence review brought by Trading

Standards as a Responsible Authority.

The Licensing Officer, Daliah Barrett outlined details of an application for a premises licence review brought by the Trading Standards team against the above named premises for the storage and selling of large quantities of non duty paid tobacco on licensed premises. Ms Barrett advised that she had received confirmation from the licence holder, Mr Longming Yan, that he would not be attending the hearing but stated that he did not wish to lose his premises licence. The options available to the Committee in determining the application with regard to the licensing objectives were outlined. Their attention was also drawn to the s182 guidance, in particular paragraph 11.27 which identified certain criminal activities that could arise in licensed premises which should be treated particularly seriously and which included the sale or storage of smuggled tobacco and alcohol.

Rebecca Whitehouse from the Trading Standards team outlined the case made against the licence holder. Following the seizure of 40320 non UK duty paid cigarettes during a joint inspection undertaken with HMRC of the premises on 6 April 2016, the licence holder had subsequently been prosecuted for the offence. He pled guilty and received a fine of £1520 plus costs. Concern was expressed that the level of the fine was not a sufficient deterrent against the future sale of illicit cigarettes and which remained a problem both nationally and within the borough, particularly related to the impact on young people and vulnerable communities. In admitting the offence, the licence holder had demonstrated that he had not been acting as a responsible retailer. As such, the Trading Standards team were recommending the imposition of additional conditions to the premises licence and the suspension of the licence for up to three months for failing to uphold the licensing objectives of the prevention of crime and disorder and public safety.

In response to questions from the Committee, officers confirmed that the premises licence was required for the sale of alcohol and that based on the illicit stock seized in April, the licence holder had evaded £9k in duty. It was emphasised however that this provided only a snapshot as it was unclear for how long the licence holder had been committing the offence, with illicit stock hidden both behind the counter and in the basement.

The Committee queried whether further inspections would be undertaken of the premises to check compliance. Officers advised that a verification check would be undertaken in the future but that individual retailers could not be singled out.  

The Committee expressed concern that a potential suspension of the premises licence could put the business at risk of failure. Officers advised that the Council wanted to support local businesses but they needed to trade in a legal way. The licensing officer also identified that the s182 guidance outlined that the licensing authority had a duty under a review to take steps with a view to the promotion of the licensing objectives in the interests of the wider community and not those of the individual  ...  view the full minutes text for item 21.