Agenda and draft minutes

The Democratic and Civic Officer opened the meeting and introductions were made. She then asked for nominations for Chairman and it was

RESOLVED that Councillor Cotton be elected Chairman of the Licensing Sub-Committee for this meeting.

Councillor Cotton took the Chair for the remainder of the meeting and round the table introductions were made.

Members may make any declarations of interest at this point but may also make them at any time during the course of the meeting.

The Chairman declared a personal non-pecuniary interest on the grounds that he was a serving Magistrate and such matters, as being dealt with by the Sub Committee, could be appealed through the Magistrates’ Court. In the event that any appeal in connection with the case did arise, Councillor Cotton would not be permitted to consider the appeal and would absent himself from the bench.

To resolve that under Section 14 (2) of the Licensing Act 2003 (Hearings) Regulations 2005 – the public and press be excluded from the meeting for the following item of business.

In view of the restricted information provided by the police, in relation to both hearing reviews, it was moved and seconded that the hearings be conducted within closed session.

RESOLVED that in accordance with Regulation 14 of the Licensing Act 2003 (Hearings) Regulations 2005 – the public and press be excluded from the remainder of the session as the Sub-Committee considered that the public interest in doing so outweighed the public interest in the hearings.

Licence Number: 32UHB60016

Hearing Type: Review of a premises licence

Premises: Murco Costcutter Express, Bridge Filling Station,

Gainsborough

Licence Number: 32UHB60016

Hearing Type: Review of a premises licence

Premises: Murco Costcutter Express, Bridge Filling Station, Gainsborough

The Council’s Legal Advisor set out the procedure that would be followed, as detailed in the attachment for Agenda Item 4. The Licensing Officer was then requested to present his report, which set out the circumstances leading to the licence review having being brought before Committee, namely an application for review having been received from Lincolnshire Police. Further information regarding the application was set out in the confidential appendices. The Licensing Officer noted that the guidelines referenced in section 5 of the report had been updated since the circulation of papers to all parties, he confirmed he had a copy of the guidelines should anyone wish to view them. The options available for the Committee were set out in paragraph 6.2 of the report. 

The applicant for the review, Lincolnshire Police, was then invited to present their case, outlining their reasons for applying for the licence review. In doing so, they explained that from all information presented to them, as detailed in the confidential appendices, they had concluded there was sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the licensing objective for the prevention of crime and disorder was being undermined. It was stated that owing to the delay between the date of the application for review and the convening of the Licensing Sub-Committee, accepted by all to be through no fault of any party but owing instead to severe weather conditions at the time of the original planned hearing, there had been significant changes made to the management of the premises and the licence holder involved previously had been removed. The representative from Lincolnshire Police stated that all improvements had been swift and appeared to be efficient and effective. He stated there were new procedures in place for the management of staff, for the working of the CCTV system and that Lincolnshire Police were satisfied that, as long as the changes were adhered to, the licensing objectives would be upheld.

The representative for the premises and the Members of the Sub-Committee were given the opportunity to ask questions of Lincolnshire Police. All confirmed there were no questions.

The Chairman therefore invited the representative for the licensed premises to present their case in support of the licence continuing. The representative explained that as soon as the company had become aware of the issues at the site in question, they had put in immediate sanctions. They had maintained contact with Lincolnshire Police and the Licensing Officer through all proceedings and had recently succeeded in removing the previous licence holder from the premises. He explained there was now a new manager on site who was DPS and premises licence holder. He added that new procedures had been put in place regarding staff management which would be trialled across several of the company’s sites, leading to a change in company procedure. He also highlighted that re-training at the site had been completed and the company had taken a  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.

Licence Number: 32UHB15015

Hearing Type: Review of a Premises Licence

Premises: “Bankside News” 17 Bankside, Gainsborough

Note:         The Chairman reconvened the meeting at 11:25am and the Licensing Officer brought the license holder, her translator and barrister into the meeting.

The Chairman welcomed all parties and round the table introductions were made for the benefit of those involved with the premises detailed below. The Chairman re-iterated his declaration of interest as made at the opening of the meeting. He enquired of the barrister whether she was in possession of all paperwork and she confirmed this was the case. The Chairman also clarified that Members had received and reviewed all of the documentation provided.

Licence Number: 32UHB15015

Hearing Type: Review of a Premises Licence

Premises: “Bankside News” 17 Bankside, Gainsborough

The Council’s Legal Advisor set out the procedure that would be followed, as detailed in the attachment for Agenda Item 4. It was clarified with the licence holder whether she understood the proceedings or wished for her translator to have time to explain to her. She confirmed that she did understand and her translator was present to clarify any points that she may not be sure of. The Licensing Officer was then requested to present his report, which set out the circumstances leading to the licence review having being brought before Committee, namely an application for review having been received from Lincolnshire Police. Further information regarding the application was set out in the confidential appendices. The Licensing Officer noted that the guidelines referenced in section 5 of the report had been updated since the circulation of papers to all parties, he confirmed he had a copy of the guidelines should anyone wish to view them. The options available for the Committee were set out in paragraph 6.2 of the report. 

The applicant for the review, Lincolnshire Police, was then invited to present their case, outlining their reasons for applying for the licence review. In doing so, it was explained that, following information presented to them as detailed in the confidential appendices, they had conducted a visit to the premises and found there to be numerous issues that constituted a breach of the premises licence. The police concluded that there was sufficient evidence to demonstrate that the licensing objective for the prevention of crime and disorder was being undermined. It was acknowledged that owing to the delay between the date of the application for review and the convening of the Licensing Sub-Committee, accepted by all to be through no fault of any party but owing instead to severe weather conditions at the time of the original planned hearing, there had been several changes made, including the transfer of the licence to a different person, and there seemed to have been improvements in all areas. It was explained that despite these changes, there were ongoing concerns that as there was a relationship between the previous licence holder and the current licence holder, there was a risk that the issues leading to the application for review might re-occur with the new licence holder.

The Chairman invited questions from the Members of  ...  view the full minutes text for item 8.