The motion was moved by Councillors David Simpson and Henry Nelless.

Three amendments were moved on the motion.

The Liberal Democrats’ amendment as set out in item 19b was moved by Councillors Iain Dysart and Mary-Jane Jeanes.

The UKIP amendment as set out in item 19c was moved by Councillor Richard Hilton and Rodd Scott.

The Labour amendment as set out in item 19f was moved by Councillor Judy Saunders and Nick Draper.

The Mayor put each of the amendments in term to the vote:

The Liberal Democrats’ amendment was put to the vote and was lost – votes in favour 21, votes against 30.

The UKIP amendment was put to the vote and was lost – via a clear majority.

The Labour amendment was put to the vote and was carried – votes in favour 30, votes against 23.

The substantive resolution was agreed.

RESOLVED:

That Council notes that:

*     According to the latest Annual Residents’ Survey, feeling safe in your local area is by far the most important factor for the health and wellbeing of residents in Merton;

*     Over half of residents (52%) feel that this could be improved;

*     Satisfaction with how the area looks is also an important factor for health and wellbeing with around one third of local people feeling this could be improved;

*     44% of residents remain concerned about anti-social behaviour in the borough and 41% about people being drunk and rowdy; and

*     The majority (64%) of violent crime in the UK occurs in the evening or at night and one fifth of all violent incidents take place in or around a pub or club.

That Council recognises that Merton has a vibrant night time economy with a wide range of restaurants, theatres and bars, which attract many visitors to the borough as well as encouraging residents to support local businesses in town centres and local parades. Whilst the majority of licensed premises behave in a responsible manner and with due respect to their neighbours, there are however on going issues with anti-social behaviour, noise nuisance and littering, often connected to binge drinking and exacerbated by the proliferation of ever later licences permitted under the previous government’s 24-hour licensing laws. Council notes with disappointment that the current government decided not to implement minimum alcohol pricing and have also not implemented the provision in the 2011 Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act which would have made public health an objective in licensing applications.

That Council believes that Merton’s residents deserve to live in peace in their own homes; that residents and visitors all deserve a safe and clean environment, in which to enjoy an evening out in the borough; and that the Council has a responsibility, in conjunction with the police, to tackle the problem of alcohol fuelled crime and anti-social behaviour where it blights the lives of local communities.

That Council therefore welcomes the new powers introduced by the government as part of the Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act 2011 to enable local communities to tackle this antisocial behaviour by making it easier for the police and councils to deal with pubs, clubs and bars which contribute to the problems of late night drinking, but notes that the Licensing Committee considered early morning restriction orders (EMRO) and the late night levy at their meeting on 28 February 2013 and, based in part on advice from the police, agreed that they should not be introduced at the present time.

That Council believes that government should introduce further powers to combat the proliferation of betting shops which can lead to increased crime and higher levels of gambling addiction in often poorer communities, by allowing local authorities to clamp down on unsustainable levels of conversions to betting shops.

That Council particularly welcomes:

*     Merton’s implementation of a borough-wide Controlled Drinking Zone in July 2013 in order to allow police to tackle alcohol related anti social behaviour

*     Cabinet’s decision in January 2014 to implement a six month pilot of an all year round out of hours noise pollution service.  The council looks forward to reviewing the evidence to assess whether the service provides value for money for our residents.

*     The Cabinet Member’s decision to focus additional resources on litter enforcement by working with a specialist environmental crime enforcement organisation whose officers will work alongside our own enforcement team to tackle the behaviour of those dropping litter on our streets.

*     The Leader’s recent letter to the Secretary of State Eric Pickles in support of the London Borough of Hackney’s proposal under the Sustainable Communities Act to allow local authorities the power to clamp down on the proliferation of betting offices by changing their planning use class.

That Council commits to continue delivering a better balance in future between the thriving night time economy in Merton and the need for all licensed premises to respect their neighbours by ensuring that alcohol-related problems, including anti-social behaviour, littering and noise, are properly addressed. As such, this Council resolves to call on the administration to:

A)   Clamp down on any licensed premises which break the terms of their licences through firmer enforcement of the rules;

B)   Ask the Licensing Committee if they would like to review their February 2013 decision relating to powers under the 2011 Police Reform and Social Responsibility Act, bearing in mind the advice from the police that Merton “would not profit from a late night levy”; that there are already two cumulative impact zones in place in Wimbledon; that the police “do not have the evidence from crime statistics in Wimbledon Town Centre to request an EMRO at the present time” and that the police believe an EMRO “would most likely have a detrimental effect on businesses in the Town Centre.”;

C)   Monitor the performance of the new litter enforcement regime in Merton which will deploy specialist environmental crime enforcers to catch and prosecute those who blight our communities, including late at night outside bars and clubs where required; and

D)   Monitor the results of the pilot all year round out of hours noise pollution enforcement service introduced in January 2014 to provide reassurance and comfort to residents whose sleep is disturbed by inconsiderate neighbours.