Transcript

Welcome to this meeting of the Licensing Subcommittee. The Licensing Subcommittee this morning is made up of Councillors Sillett, Thaylan and Woolridge. The first item of business is the appointment of a chair for the meeting. Can I ask subcommittee members to nominate a chair for the meeting? Nominate Councillor Woolridge. I'll now second that. Thank you. Councillor Woolridge, you're in the chair. Thank you. This meeting is being broadcast live, recorded and would be made available on the Council's YouTube channel. The agenda is available on the Council's website by following the links to your Council and decision-making consultations and surveys and then committee agendas and minutes. The quorum for this meeting is three members and all will need to be present at all times. If any subcommittee member or the legal advisor lose connection, we will pause to allow them to rejoin as soon as possible. To reduce feedback, could everyone mute their microphone while not speaking? After the subcommittee has heard the submission, I will ask if members have any questions on the submission. Members can also indicate that they wish to speak by using the chat function. Please do not use the chat function to ask questions of officers or members and remember that all meeting participants on the video call will be able to see what has been entered into the chat. Please also keep mobile phones in silent mode or switched off during the meeting. I am Councillor Waldridge. I will now introduce the other participants in the meeting. Councillor Cillit, Councillor Tyallon, Councillor Waldridge myself, Guide Bishop, Legal Advisor, Nicky Bentley, Licensing Officer. The applicant is not in the meeting or other persons. Are there any members of the subcommittee who would like to move to the Licensing Officer making representations? Councillor, could you do declarations first? Oh, declarations, yes. Thank you for the prompt. Does any member of the subcommittee have a pecuniary interest, non-regittal interest, or other registral interest to declare in relation to the application today? No. Can we confirm the minutes of the meeting held on the 16th of May '24 as a correct record? Agreed. I will find them at a later date. The parties have already been notified of the usual procedures for licensing hearings as set out on page three to final the agenda. Paragraph 57 on page four of the agenda pack deals with notification of the decision following the subcommittee deliberations. This will firstly be confirmed by email later today and full details and reasons will follow within five working days. Are there any objections to proceeding on the basis of those procedures? No. We move on to the hearing. I believe I now call on Nicky Bentley, the Licensing Officer, to introduce the report on the application. Lovely. Thank you, Chair. This application for full variation to a premises license relates to Poor Boys Units 5 and 8, the Griffin Centre, Marketplace, Kingston upon Thames, KT1 1JT. The application was made on the 19th of April, 2024, by Mr Abbas Kadar on behalf of PB, KT Ltd. The application for a full variation seeks the addition of off-sales to the premises license to match the current hours for on-sales, which are as follows. Monday to Friday, midday to 11 p.m., Saturday 10 a.m. to 11 p.m., and Sundays 10 a.m. to 9 p.m. There are no changes to the opening hours or to any of the other licenceable activities on the current premises license. It is worth noting that the venue currently benefits from the permission to offer off-sales of alcohol through the Business and Planning Act 2020, which was introduced by the Government during the Covid pandemic to help hubs and restaurants recover. However, as this is only a temporary measure, currently extended until March 2025, the applicant wishes to ensure that the off-sales of alcohol becomes a permanent addition to their premises license. Relevant pages of the application form are attached to the Annex 1, the current licence is attached to the Annex 2, and the hours of operation, which are unchanged except for the addition of off-sales, are laid out in Annex 3. I can confirm that the applicant has advertised the application by way of public notice displayed at the premises and in a local newspaper. The application has also been made available on the Council's website for the full consultation period. I can confirm that all responsible authorities received a copy of the application and no representations were submitted. In accordance with the Council's licensing policy, 551 addresses were consulted in writing and informed that an application had been received. Three valid representations were received from other persons, however one chose to withdraw their objection, leaving two representations to the application. The representations make reference to matters that relate to the prevention of crime and disorder, the prevention of public nuisance and public safety licensing objectives, and copies of the representations are attached in Annex 4. A map showing the approximate location of the premises is attached in Annex 5, and some photographs of the premises and surrounding area are attached for your information in Annex 6. In considering this report, you are required to take into account the Secretary of State's guidance, issued under section 182 of the Licensing Act 2003, our licensing policy and the licensing objectives. The Council's licensing policy was reviewed in July 2021 and it now includes some guidelines on licensing and trading hours, and these are included within Annex 7. You are asked to determine the application, have in regard to the representations received and any evidence had at the hearing in line with the options set out in paragraph 17 of the licensing report. Thank you, Jen. I think you are on mute. Members, do you have any questions for the officer? Yes, for the record, could you confirm there has not been any complaints or issues since 2020 when the temporary license was granted? I've looked back through our records. If you're asking, in 2021 there was an allegation of gathering outside the premises which weren't in line with COVID regulations. As far as I can see, police attended and no action was taken. Great, thank you. Any other questions? Thank you, Councillor Sudders. Is it clear from documents that this is for people collecting food and drink from the premises rather than just home deliveries? Yes, Councillor, the application is for off sales to be cemented on, so that would include both being able to take the alcohol away and for deliveries. Thank you. Another question, just to confirm that the police haven't objected to this application? No, the police have not objected. Any further questions? Thank you. At this time, we normally ask for the applicant, but sadly the applicant is not in the meeting or other persons. So I think the process now means that I just now make my closing statement. So the subcommittee will now withdraw and make its decision. The decision will be confirmed to all parties by email and the full decision notice with reasons will then be sent to all parties within five working days. Please can members of the subcommittee reconvene in the decision meeting ASAP for the decision. Thank you.

• Thank you. [BLANK_AUDIO]