Clause 61 - Qualifying clubs
Licensing Bill [Lords]
2:30 pm
Mr Malcolm Moss (North East Cambridgeshire, Conservative)
Welcome back to the Chair, Mr. Benton.
Under clause 61, there still seems to be the outstanding issue of the Caravan Club of Great Britain. The club has approached the Minister on more than one occasion; I am informed that the last time was on 18 March and at that meeting some assurances were given that have not been followed up either in writing or by the Minister himself. Perhaps he can use the clause as an opportunity to give a definitive ruling as to whether the club would be a qualifying club under the requirements of clause 61.
The club's normal activities are associated with national, regional and local meetings and rallies, and it is not engaged in regulated entertainment. There is no dispute about whether the club's activity comes under schedule 1(2). The entertainment, if anything, is exclusive to the rally participants, who are club members and not members of the public, and the club was given the assurance that it was not a qualifying club under clause 61. As we also know, its provision of entertainment is not
''for consideration and with a view to profit''.
The club needs assurances that it will not be caught in the net by doubt over whether it is a qualifying club. If it is a qualifying club, it would have to seek licences and address the problems that many outdoor activities have in working out how a licence applies—for example, does the licence apply to a field, or a locality? It would have to tackle all those questions that relate to the temporary provision of licences, which is covered later in the clause. It would be helpful if the Minister clarified the situation for the Caravan Club, which has been waiting for a response for about six weeks.