LICENSING ACT 2003 – 6 MONTHS ON

Certainly, on 24 th November 2005 a significant proportion – if not the majority – of licensed premises had still to receive an actual premises licence document which gave them the authority to continue to trade and should have set out the terms upon which they could trade. As at May 2006 some 20% of premises are still waiting on that document.

To give that increased flexibility to existing premises, at the time an application was made to convert the existing licence to the new licence, an application for variation (whether to extend operating hours or to allow for additional activities on the premises etc.) could be made. The majority of premises took advantage of this with the result that many such premises now can operate for longer or different hours than before but often only in exchange for other imposed safeguards, whether it be the provision of (improved) CCTV, the employment of Door Supervisors or other constraints.

Once eventually received, the licence document itself has to be available at all times on the licensed premises and a summary of the licence (including its operating hours) on permanent public display.

This often is the only indication within the premises of the hours on which they now open and with the exception of probably only one large operator, premises have not taken the opportunity to advertise their opening hours on the outside of the premises leaving the poor punter with a lack of information as to what is open and until when, making an educated choice of venue somewhat difficult.

This lack of information and the limited promotion of longer opening hours, perhaps due to a fear of provoking negative publicity, have resulted in a market that looks almost unchanged. To the casual observer, the pubs, clubs and bars in England and Wales appear no different and the advent of round the clock drinking seems not to have happened. In short, a Saturday night in the average town centre looks much the same now as it did before the new regime came into force.

In anticipation of the introduction of the new regime, much was made in the press of the likelihood of increased disorder in Town and City centres particularly late at night. In general terms the worst fears have been confounded and the anticipated increased disorder has not arisen. Journalists who strolled the streets late at night looking for such disorder in the early stages were usually disappointed and returned home without their anticipated scoop!

As for the impact on the night time economy this has been limited. At the end of the day those who regularly go out and about at night and in particular at the weekends have not suddenly got an increased amount to spend on their entertainment but the established pattern is that it is perhaps now spent a little later in the evening. Trade has not necessarily increased but has been a little deferred.

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