The Mudcat Café TM
Thread #56918 Message #894239
Posted By: The Shambles
20-Feb-03 - 09:59 AM
Thread Name: Howells (now) asks for help PELs
Subject: RE: Howells (now) asks for help PELs
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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