Issue - meetings

The Chairman summarised the procedure for Sub-Committee hearing. All those present were introduced or introduced themselves.

The Senior Licensing and Enforcement Officer presented his report covering an application for a new premises licence under Section 17 of the Licensing Act 2003. The Sub-Committee was advised that on 14 March 2022, Lidl Great Britain Limited submitted an application for a new premises licence at 295 – 297 Stansted Road, Bishop’s Stortford, Hertfordshire, CM23 2BT. The application sought permission for the supply of alcohol for consumption off of the premises, Monday - Sunday 07:00 – 23:00.

Members were advised that the applicant had proposed a number of steps which they intended to take to promote the four licensing objectives. These included the training of staff and the operation of a Challenge 25 policy.

Members were further advised that there had been seven valid representations received from local residents acting as interested parties, which could be seen at Appendix B of the report. The representations from residents raised concerns of noise, safety from traffic and anti-social behaviour and engaged the public safety, prevention of public nuisance and prevention of crime and disorder licensing objectives. There had been no representations received from the Authorities.

The Senior Licensing and Enforcement Officer drew Members’ attention to an error at paragraph 3.9 in the report, and confirmed that the site of the proposed premises was not a field, that it was instead currently being utilised by a car manufacturer as a service garage. 

Members were advised that if they believed that the application would not promote the four licencing objectives, they should take appropriate and proportionate action to address these concerns. The Sub-Committee could attach conditions, limit the hours or restrict licensable activities. The application should only be refused as a last resort and the Members’ decision should be evidence based, justified, appropriate and proportionate.  

The applicant’s legal representative briefly introduced the application. She referred to the representations received from residents, shown at pages 73 – 79 of the report, and said that they contained general, unsubstantiated comments which were not based on evidence. She advised that the application included a request to trade alcohol on Sundays between 07:00 – 23:00, but clarified that this request had been made only in anticipation of any possible future relaxation in Sunday trading hours. 

The applicant’s legal representative said that Lidl had 860 stores in the UK, and was therefore experienced at operating units in different locations, including those in towns and on retail parks. She said that Lidl was aware of its responsibilities and provided extensive training to staff to prevent the sale of alcohol to persons under the age of 18, to those who are intoxicated, and to recognise the signs of proxy purchases. She said that all staff were required to complete this training prior to working on the shop floor, and to complete refresher training at least every six months, with records kept of this training.

She continued by saying that Lidl also employed external  ...  view the full minutes text for item 60