Attempted withdrawal of Leven hotel's licence ends in new act's re-evaluation
Suggestions have been made that the Scottish Government may have to review sections of its flagship Licensing Act after a perceived flaw meant attempts to withdraw a hotel's liquor licence had to be withdrawn.
- By Claire Warrender
- Published in the Courier : 14.09.10
- Published online : 14.09.10 @ 12.50pm
A solicitor acting for Brannigans Hotel in Leven branded the decision to review the hotel's licence "the most Mickey Mouse procedure known to man."
Brannigans had been called before Fife's licensing board on Monday, after members heard police had been called 45 times in a year because of fights, noise and other disturbances.
However, because board members asked for the review, solicitor Tom Johnston said it effectively made them judge and jury of their own cause and was unfair.
The board is perfectly entitled to call for such a review under the terms of the act, which only came into force last September, but Mr Johnston said that if members decided to strip Brannigans of its licence, the hotel would likely win an appeal at great cost to the public.
After taking advice from the clerk to the board, stunned councillors agreed to withdraw the review and instead agreed with the solicitor's suggestion that the hotel be closely monitored over the coming months.
"As we start to get into the innards of this new piece of legislation before us, we begin to realise how badly drafted and ill thought through certain aspects of it are," said Mr Johnston. "I understand you are allowed to instigate a review proposal but this is a decision made in the heat of the moment.
"It's utterly inconceivable as a matter of fairness that the same person who called for a review would then be the person sitting making the decision. That would just be the most Mickey Mouse procedure known to man."
Mr Johnston added, "With the greatest of respect, the new procedures should be looked at with care. I do wonder if in the interests of common sense it might make sense to abandon this proceeding today to request that the licensing standards' officers continue to monitor the premises, and if there is a problem — and we don't think there is — it's relatively easy to bring this back in a manner which would not have us testing the frontiers of European human rights law, possibly at great expense to the public purse."
Clerk to the licensing board Frank Jensen told members he had some sympathy with Mr Johnston's position, and added, "There may be difficulty in the legislation which the Scottish Government may well have to resolve in the future."
Mr Jensen said the board was entitled to proceed with the hearing but warned, "You would be proceeding in the knowledge you are complying with legislation but are aware of the possible flaws within it.
"If you do proceed and there is an appeal this is most likely to be challenged, but that would not be the fault of the board. There are obstacles in the way the legislation is written to allowing hearings in a fair manner."
Image used under Creative Commons licence courtesy of jason.mok.
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