Venue: Committee rooms C, D & E - Merton Civic Centre, London Road, Morden SM4 5DX. View directions
Contact: Richard Seedhouse, Democratic Services Officer, Tel: 0208 545 3616, Email: democratic.services@merton.gov.uk
Link: View the meeting here
No. | Item |
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Apologies for absence Minutes:Apologies were received from Cllrs Brunt and Henry. Cllrs Kohler and Page attended online. |
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Declarations of Pecuniary Interest Minutes:There were no declarations of interest. |
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Minutes of the previous meeting Minutes:RESOLVED: that the minutes of the meeting on 9 July were agreed as an accurate record. |
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Report on the proposed revised Statement of Principles under the Gambling Act 2005 Additional documents:
Minutes:The report was introduced by the officer who noted that it was not possible to ban gambling premises, but must consider relevant factors when an application is received. The local area profile addresses some points made in the the consultation, for instance premsies are not located near schools.
The officer highlighted to members that option 3 in the paper would leave the council without a policy with which to assess applications when received.
In response to questions it was confirmed that:
- On average, there no new applications each year, in general we have seen a reduction in the number premises, not just in the borough, but nationally as more and more gambling moves online. - There are 21 premises in the borough at present, predominantly betting shops. - Although 17 responses may seem low, this is an expected level of response, the policy is on of largely no change. We don’t expect high response to policy questions, though an application would likely attract more comment.
It was RESOLVED that the policy was agreed as recommended. |
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New Pavement Licence Fees Minutes:The report was introduced by the Licensing Officer, who noted that the current fees started under temporary legislation in 2020 when they were capped at £100, they were only intended to last for 1 year in response to the impact of Covid on the hospitality industry. They are now part of the permanent licence regime, with the need to raise the charges applied to new applications and renewals. The Committee was asked to agree to a fee of £500 for new applications and renewals and variations to be charged at £350.
Licenses can be issued for up to two years, but in London, with its denser population, one year is appropriate and in line with neighbouring boroughs. Licenses can be assessed more frequently with changes of ownership or management of premises.
Applications are handled officers, and require 14 days for consultation followed by 14 days to make a decision. If the 14 days are exceeded, applications are automatically granted.
In response to questions it was confirmed that:
- All applications have a site visit which considers a range of issues including space, nearby street furniture, the primary concern is the area to be used rather than the number of seats. Highway officers also visit sites. - The fees are recommended based on the experience of handling similar applications, even on renewals, checks are carried out and correspondence with applicants is managed. - This is a new scheme with new fees, we have benchmarked with neighbouring boroughs and compared data on application levels, even at £100 applications numbers were low. - All fees for all licenses are reviewed at regular intervals - Ring fencing of licencing income to fund the regime is a standard practice, the income can only be used to fund the service, the service should not make a profit. - Experience shows that even at lower rates, there has not been a high volume of applications. A lower fee would mean that funding for the service would need to come from elsewhere. This would be a general audit matter, to explain why funds were being used to subsidise street trading when there had been recommendations to increase charges. - Pavement licences replace the need for street licences, pavement licences can only be used on the public highway, not on private land near the highway. - The temporary legislation did not include enforcement; - There is no right of appeal under statutory legislation where they have been agreed. Decisions can be looked at under the council’s formal complaints process. - The council can subsidise the cost of licences, and this has happened already. This would be a decision taken at Full Council, and would need to show how much and why, and be clear on the benefit, for audit purposes. - There is no refund process for refused applications, the fees cover the cost of administering the application, not the outcome of the application. - A flat fee structure is recommended, that can be reviewed in the future once ... view the full minutes text for item 5. |