The Publican

18th February 2003

New licence fees will have to be set higher than the government's proposals or councils will go bust, claims a leading licensing lawyer.

Speaking at a House of Lords committee meeting Chris Hepher, of Pullig & Co, said the government's suggested annual licence fee would leave a black hole in local authorities' accounts "the size of Enron".

Under the new system, the government is suggesting the one-off cost of applying for a premises licence will be between £100 and £500, with an annual charge of between £50 and £150.

But because public entertainment licences (PEL) will be scrapped it will mean councils will lose millions of pounds in fees.

"A large pub or club might pay £12,000 for a PEL," said Mr Hepher. "If it is asked to pay an annual renewal fee of £150, you can see the council is going to lose money hand over fist.

"Councils will need more money to help them deal with licensing, not less."

A spokesman from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport said: "We have published an assessment which gives an in-depth analysis of the cost implications of the Licensing Bill. We are therefore confident that the fee levels proposed are sufficient.

"We are in on-going dialogue with the Local Government Association and will discuss with it any concerns."

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