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Burstow pushes for reform of licensing laws
August 4, 2006 10:32 AM
Research undertaken by Paul Burstow, MP for Sutton and Cheam, has revealed a serious loophole in licensing laws. Paul Burstow launched his enquiry when local residents contacted him after a local pub started playing music into the early hours of the morning.
When the residents contacted Sutton Council and the police, they were told that the pub was operating under a 'Temporary Event Notice' (TEN) and that nothing could be done. Under the TEN regime, a notice is issued to the council and local police: the council and local people have no right to object and the notices can only be refused on public safety grounds.
TENs are intended for use at school fetes or events in church halls, but due to a loophole, can be used by licensed premises. Once a pub is operating under a TEN, none of the conditions of its normal license apply.
Figures obtained from Sutton Council by Paul Burstow reveals that nearly 25% of all temporary event notices issued in the borough were to licensed premises. The vast majority of these were used as so that pubs could stay open later on New Year's Eve, without having to go through regular channels.
Speaking on the issue in a recent debate in the House of Commons, Burstow said:
"These notices are being used by pubs to avoid the conditions of their licenses."
"The fact is that temporary event notices create a loophole in the licensing laws that smart licensees use to get round the conditions imposed on them after public consultation."
"I do not blame the pub or its landlord for using the loophole; I blame the Government for not foreseeing that get-out clause in the new regime."
Commenting recently, Burstow said:
"The loophole was born of good intentions. But it requires the Government to act now to make sure pubs can't use this system to get around license conditions."
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