Welcome for report on licensing reform

Ministers have hailed a new report suggesting that the controversial Licensing Act is beginning to have a positive impact.

Published by 10 councils which had been asked to monitor the impact of the reforms, the study said there were benefits for residents, police and local authorities.

It suggested that residents are now more aware of their rights with regard to licensed premises, and licensees are more aware of their responsibilities.

The police and local authorities were said to be making representations in a way that helps licensed premises.

And police forces are also "increasingly using the enforcement powers under the Act to deal with problem premises".

Amongst the concerns of the local councils was that in some cases "residents had felt uncomfortable about making representations because of the requirement to divulge their names and addresses to the applicant".

There were also calls for improvement in the guidance provided with new licensing forms.

Licensing minister Shaun Woodward said: "This report is encouraging. It shows that residents are engaging in the licensing process - and their concerns are being taken seriously.

"What is particularly significant is that the application process weeded out rogue premises.

"It made problem venues smarten up their act in order to get a new licence and it made licensees take their responsibilities far more seriously.

"Of course it is still early days and it's too early to draw firm conclusions about the impact of the Act.

"But as this is the biggest shake up of the licensing laws in more than 40 years, it stands to reason that there are going to be some improvements that can be made.

"We will be taking the councils' recommendations on board as we re-draft the guidance for police and local authorities and in our wider monitoring and evaluation of the Act."