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Title – Late night opening fails to halt violence
Source – The Independent
Date – 5th February 2008
The fact that the average extension in licensing hours across the country is only 21 minutes speaks volumes about the overzealous media hype regarding the so called 24-hour drinking and is anyone really surprised that violence has gone up between 3am and 6am? Was that not one of the points of the Licensing Act 2003?
At the time of the debate police were asking for staggered closing times to allow them to deal with problems consistently throughout the night rather than all at the same time at 11pm. So if alcohol related crime as a whole is the same, but there has been a rise in crime between 3am and 6am then one of the objectives has surely been achieved as there must have been a reduction before 3am.
Obviously any level of crime is an issue that should be addressed and crime rising at any time is an issue, but let’s not change the goalposts half way through the game, but rather enforce the rules that already exist fairly.
The Licensing act 2003 introduced additional restrictions as well as additional freedoms on the licensed retail sector, they took power from magistrates and put it in the hands of local authorities and now the local authorities are the ones complaining that they have no control and that problems persist. It does seem they wanted the control and now don’t want to accept the blame for the lack of progress.
The licensed retail sector as a whole wants to eliminate alcohol related crime as much as anyone. The burden is not just on society, anyone who really understands the business realises that it puts a burden on the industry as well. Increased regulation, increased costs in relation to security and infrastructure and loss of trade all add to the problems the industry faces. If part of that process is to remove rogue traders then the responsible retailers will support that, if the solution is to support those that are trying to act responsibly but struggling through the burden of regulation or the lack of local support from authorities then there are ways to address that as well.
But ultimately the fact is that while it is easy to suggest that more powers would be given to “…shut bars if trouble persists”, most within the sector would say in return, the Licensing Act 2003 already provided the authorities with that opportunity and those powers, maybe they should be used effectively first, rather than asking for more.
Source – The Independent
Date – 5th February 2008
The fact that the average extension in licensing hours across the country is only 21 minutes speaks volumes about the overzealous media hype regarding the so called 24-hour drinking and is anyone really surprised that violence has gone up between 3am and 6am? Was that not one of the points of the Licensing Act 2003?
At the time of the debate police were asking for staggered closing times to allow them to deal with problems consistently throughout the night rather than all at the same time at 11pm. So if alcohol related crime as a whole is the same, but there has been a rise in crime between 3am and 6am then one of the objectives has surely been achieved as there must have been a reduction before 3am.
Obviously any level of crime is an issue that should be addressed and crime rising at any time is an issue, but let’s not change the goalposts half way through the game, but rather enforce the rules that already exist fairly.
The Licensing act 2003 introduced additional restrictions as well as additional freedoms on the licensed retail sector, they took power from magistrates and put it in the hands of local authorities and now the local authorities are the ones complaining that they have no control and that problems persist. It does seem they wanted the control and now don’t want to accept the blame for the lack of progress.
The licensed retail sector as a whole wants to eliminate alcohol related crime as much as anyone. The burden is not just on society, anyone who really understands the business realises that it puts a burden on the industry as well. Increased regulation, increased costs in relation to security and infrastructure and loss of trade all add to the problems the industry faces. If part of that process is to remove rogue traders then the responsible retailers will support that, if the solution is to support those that are trying to act responsibly but struggling through the burden of regulation or the lack of local support from authorities then there are ways to address that as well.
But ultimately the fact is that while it is easy to suggest that more powers would be given to “…shut bars if trouble persists”, most within the sector would say in return, the Licensing Act 2003 already provided the authorities with that opportunity and those powers, maybe they should be used effectively first, rather than asking for more.
I once again implore the government and local authorities to think more positively, stop the stick and stick approach and consider for once offering a carrot. There are effective training courses which help businesses and those working within them to better understand their responsibilities, they are proven to improve the standards that outlets have in regard to responsible alcohol retailing. It may just be that a government look at providing support for those who are burdened by the costs of improving, rewarding those who want to be more responsible but are suffering under the regulation to meet the cost of their obligation. Just for once look for a positive approach rather than just the red card, yellow card, restriction, prohibition, revocation approach. Reward alongside punishment might just turn an industry that feels under fire, to one that sees the benefit of adopting responsible alcohol retailing as its core.
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