Decision

The Licensing Sub-Committee in considering this decision from the information presented to it within the report and at the hearing today has determined that the application is refused.

Reasons for the decision

The Licensing Sub-Committee, having heard from the Applicant and the Licensing Authority, decided not to grant the application to renew the Sexual Entertainment Licence pursuant to Section 2 and Schedule 3 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982 (‘the 1982 Act’) as amended by the Policing and Crime Act 2009.

The Sub-Committee heard representations from the Applicant’s solicitor in support of the renewal of that application. The Sub-Committee took into consideration that on

4 and 9 July 2021 breaches of the Coronavirus Regulations were alleged by the Police.

The Sub-Committee heard that the Applicant and the premises owner was intending to remove COVID-19 restrictions in anticipation of their national removal on 26 June 2021. However, the date for the removal of COVID-19 restrictions was postponed until 19 July 2021. Due to personal circumstances the Applicant had to leave the premises to stay at another location. He relied on staff at the premises to delay the removal of the restrictions. The restrictions were removed in advance of 19 July 2021. As a consequence, the Applicant had paid a fine. The Applicant’s representative contended that it was unlikely that there would be a repeat.

The Sub-Committee took into account that there were complaints about the behaviour of the dancers. The Sub-Committee heard that Applicant had put in place measures to prevent repetition, including the closure of the upstairs dancing area. The private dancing was now restricted to an area on the ground floor.

The Sub-Committee had concerns about dancers not complying with the restrictions on their behaviour, and not having physical contact with customers.

The Sub-Committee noted that dancers appear to have breached conditions 31 – 36 of the licence when it was the Applicant’s responsibility to ensure that they understood the requirements. It was noted that a number of employees spoke English as a second language.

Having heard the representations the Sub-Committee took seriously the following concerns: the safety of young women at the premises, the operation of the premises and about the processes and procedures in place. They also had concerns about the ability of the premises to operate responsibly, and to comply with the conditions, and the incidents and the alleged breaches recurring due to a lack of management at the premises on a day-to-day basis.

The Sub-Committee took into account that the matters raised related to a wider pattern of behaviour rather than isolated incidents. Therefore, the Sub-Committee decided that they could not grant the renewal of this licence.