Clause 80 - Notification of change of name or alteration
Licensing Bill [Lords]
6:00 pm
Dr Kim Howells (Parliamentary Under-Secretary, Department for Culture, Media & Sport; Pontypridd, Labour)
That is a very good question. The Committee has discussed at length how fees are to be set and what constitutes a local authority's overheads—that was the key word in the hon. Gentleman's questions. Clearly, a sports club or any other type of club should not have to carry the cost of street cleaning, for example, because we all pay council tax in order that such tasks can be properly paid for and carried out.
The fees will be set at a level that allows the authority to recover its costs, but not to make a profit—there is a big difference. The hon. Member for Cities of London and Westminster gave good examples of some of the costs that his local authority charged, and he argued cogently that because of variations the fees are bound to be higher in some areas than in others. There is no question about that.
The costs of the procedures set out in clauses 80 and 81 will be small, as they are for administrative charges. We anticipate that they will be about £10—we are not talking about large sums of money. In addition, clubs will rarely ask for such changes to be made to their certificates. I am trying very hard to think of clubs in my own constituency that have regularly changed their address. Some sports clubs have moved their grounds occasionally, but the place where alcohol is consumed and entertainment takes place usually remains the same, for obvious reasons.
The costs associated with the new system will not be burdensome for clubs. In fact, significant savings will result from the reductions in bureaucracy that the Bill will introduce. For example, it will do away with the need for hearings for the majority of applications for certificates.
I have tried on many occasions to set out as clearly as I can why it is important for fee levels to be prescribed centrally and not at local level. We need to ensure that, while all licensing authorities recover their costs, there is consistency and transparency for those applying for certificates or licences. That is important. To allow fees to be set locally might undermine that. After that reassurance, I hope that the hon. Member for Isle of Wight will withdraw the amendment.