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Coalition Government - what it means for the licensed trade? Update

The New Coalition Government has this morning announced further detail of their agreed programme for government. 

The proposals which deal with the licensed trade and licensing are copied below with a few initial observations in red.

• We will ban the sale of alcohol below cost price. This is not unexpected as it was part of both parties’ manifestos and is likely to be welcomed by the on-trade as below cost sales are largely a supermarket phenomenon.

• We will review alcohol taxation and pricing to ensure it tackles binge drinking without unfairly penalising responsible drinkers, pubs and important local industries.

• We will overhaul the Licensing Act to give local authorities and the police much stronger powers to remove licences from, or refuse to grant licences to, any premises that are causing problems. Those with experience of the current licensing regime may take the view that these powers already exist – we must await the detail of the proposals to see what in fact will be proposed.

• We will allow councils and the police to shut down permanently any shop or bar found to be persistently selling alcohol to children. This is significant; we have only recently seen the ‘three strikes’ reduced to two within a three month period which can lead to a fine or a suspension of the licence; if two strikes could lead to the permanent removal of the licence, this will be draconian indeed!

• We will double the maximum fine for under-age alcohol sales to £20,000.

• We will permit local councils to charge more for late-night licences to pay for additional policing.

The full document can be found at: Coalition Programme

That these proposals fall under the section of Crime and Policing seems to reinforce the view that licensing will indeed come under the remit of the Home Office, as has been expected for some time. Further evidence for this can be found possibly by the observations of the new Home Secretary Theresa May to the Police Federation yesterday when she is reported to have said:

''We are going to look at the licensing laws. I was in opposition when the new laws were introduced and I argued against them…I argued that those were the sorts of problems that would come about but I was told we would have a cafe culture. We think they have produced problems on the streets.”  

Update 14.08:  It has now been announced that John Penrose recently appointed as Minister for Tourism and Heritage within the DCMS has also taken on the brief for entertainment and alcohol licensing.  Despite our observations above, it would appear that responsibility for licensing will not at least yet pass to the Home Office.