Agenda and minutes

Councillor Udy was elected as chair for this meeting.  She welcomed everyone to the virtual meeting of the Licensing Sub Committee necessitated by the COVID-19 restrictions and explained how the meeting would work and the procedure that would be followed (for hearings where representations are from "other persons" i.e. residents).  Introductions were made by those present.

There were no declarations of members' interests.

The purpose of this report is for the committee to consider an application for the grant of a new premises licence pursuant to section 18 of the Licensing Act 2003 ("the Act").

The matter has been referred to the committee for determination following receipt of relevant representation from a ward councillor. Further detail about the representation received is shown at paragraph 4 below.

The committee is requested to determine the application.

Derek Stone, Licensing Officer introduced his report and explained that the application had been brought to the sub committee hearing because a representation had been received from a Ward Councillor "other persons" objecting to the proposal. 

In response to questions from members, he explained that:

The five other premises on the pier have the following opening hours: Monday to Sunday 06:00 to 01:30 and are licensed to sell alcohol Sunday to Thursday 11:00 to 00:30 and Friday & Saturday 11:00 to 00:30.

The Gaiety is open Sunday to Thursday 06:00 to 01:30 and Friday & Saturday 06:00 to 02:30.  It is permitted to sell alcohol Sunday to Thursday 10:00 to 00:30 and Friday & Saturday 110:00 to 01:00.

The Deep Blue is open Sunday 10:00 to 22:00 and 09:30 to 22:00 the rest of the week.  It is permitted to sell alcohol Sunday 12:00 to 22:00 and Monday to Saturday 09:00 to 23:00.

Details of the other two venues nearby could be given if required.

He was not surprised that the Responsible Authorities had not made any representations.  It shows that they have no concerns regarding the application.

He was not aware of any complaints or feedback regarding the premises when Temporary Event Notices were in place.

There were no questions for the Licensing Officer from Mr Wallsgrove.

In response to a question from Councillor Symes, the Licensing Officer explained that the only nearby seating was the public benches on the pier.

In response to a question from the Legal Advisor, he explained that the Gaiety Bar is under the same management as this application and that the Gaiety Bar and Deep Blue have licences for both on and off alcohol sales.  Some people currently go into the Gaiety Bar solely to buy alcohol; this bar would mean that they would not have to go inside.

Applicant's case

Mr Wallsgrove asked the committee to consider the following points:

·         Mr Trevor Bratty, the applicant has been a licence holder at the Gaiety Bar since 2017 and has lived in Portsmouth most of his life.

·         Most of the concerns expressed in the hundreds of objections made regarding the applications for the other venues on the pier were speculation about what might happen in terms of crime and disorder and public nuisance.  These concerns have proved unfounded.

·         The Gaiety has a licence for off premises alcohol sales. 

·         Government guidance is encouraging people to meet up outside in the open air.  This application would facilitate that and increase the space available in the Gaiety bar.

·         Refusing this application would not reduce the number of people consuming alcohol on the pier. 

·         Temporary Event Notices were used at this premises for 12 days; 7-12 and 14-19 August.  These were very well received and there was no negative feedback from the Responsible Authorities nor the public, except for those residents who had made representations against this application.

·         Section 182 of the guidance directs the committee to attach weight to the views of the Responsible Authorities.  They have no objections.

·         He  ...  view the full minutes text for item 13.