Clause 7 - Licensing committees
Licensing Bill [Lords]
3:15 pm
Dr Kim Howells (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Culture, Media & Sport; Pontypridd, Labour)
The sub-committee must have three members to be quorate. The hon. Member for Fareham talked about Fareham's committee having only seven members, which suggests—although I do not know for certain—that numbers can vary dramatically throughout the country. We are drafting new legislation on the basis of the consultation that we have undertaken with all of the stakeholders. The hon. Member for Isle of Wight is right: he referred to the size of the Committee as a ''magical figure''. There is no explanation for what makes a particular figure magical, but we think that we have chosen a sensible figure and a sensible range of members.
Everyone involved in the licensing regime will benefit from the ability to convene hearings, should they be required, in a timely fashion. The system set out in the Bill allows the licensing authority to respond quickly. By providing for a system of sub-committees to handle individual applications and an upper limit on the size of the full licensing committee, we can place the right emphasis on swift and efficient decision making. The Bill strikes the right balance.
Amendment No. 102 would prevent members of the local authority executive from sitting on the licensing committee. There have been suggestions of mistrust and the opportunity for ill feeling and so forth, but such arguments do local authorities an injustice. They have a difficult job to do.
The House strikes me as being like a medieval monastery—I am always finding hon. Friends and hon. Members ''cwched'' away, gossiping in little corners. There have always been cabals in this building and we are not above suspicion any more than local authorities, but we try to make things work, which is why we have rules and standing orders. We should be more generous towards local authorities about the way in which they deal with such difficult and sensitive matters.
Our arguments for limiting the size of licensing committees relate to the speed and efficiency with which applications are handled and nothing more. I do not see how the presence or absence of members of the executive affects that objective in any way. I hope that amendment No. 102 will be withdrawn on that basis.