Licensing - Local Councillors Gagged!

12.00.00am UTC (GMT +0000) Wed 17th Aug 2005

Manchester Liberal Democrats have called for local Councillors to be allowed to make representations on local licensing applications.

Under strict new rules introduced by the Labour Government, Manchester's Councillors can no longer make direct representations on local licensing applications. Previously, Councillors could write, express opinions, arrange petitions and organise campaigns.

Now they can only send out factual information to a limited area around an application, and cannot send letters or E Mails on behalf of local people who may have wanted to stay anonymous. Any representations are automatically forwarded to the licensee.

Councillor Simon Wheale, who is Chair of Manchester's Physical Environment Scrutiny committee, said,

"These new rules give the breweries and their lawyers a huge advantage. They effectively gag local Councillors and stop them doing their job. The Government need to look again to give local communities more say in future."

"What's worse, unlike Planning Applications, the Council are refusing to write to local residents when there is a licensing application in their neighbourhood! Often the first thing residents know about it is when their local Liberal Democrats write to let them know there's been an application."

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