Agenda item

The report of the Head of Elections, Licensing and Registration is to advise Members of an application made under Section 2 and Schedule 3 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982 (the Act) for the renewal of a sex establishment licence for the premises known as Liberte, 10 York Place

Leeds LS1 2DS.

(Report attached)

The Head of Elections, Licensing and Registration submitted a report on an application for the annual renewal of a Sex Establishment Licence in respect of the premises known as "Liberté", 10 York Place, Leeds, LS1 2DS. The application was made under the provisions of Section 2 and Schedule 3 of the Local Government (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1982 seeking renewal of the Licence in order to provide sexual entertainment in the form of lap dancing.

The application included consideration of the external appearance of the premises and all advertising material used to promote the business. The report included the following:

·  Dancers Welfare Policy

·  Dancers Code of Conduct

·  Customers Code of Conduct

·  Pricing Policy

·  Trade Union Details

Just prior to the hearing, the Licensing Officer and the applicant’s representative discussed the contents of the Dancers Welfare Pack which had been submitted with the application. It became clear that the version submitted was not the document that the premises currently employed. As such, the Sub Committee re-ordered the agenda for the meeting and dealt with another application, affording the applicant the time to retrieve the correct version of the Dancers Welfare Pack from the premises and present it with the application. That document was presented to the hearing, with the agreement of all parties present.

Mr J Hughes, barrister acting for the applicants attended the hearing, accompanied by Mr W Gubbins (Jeffery Green Russell, solicitors), Mr S Mohamed, Ms M Haruta, Mr L Phillip, Mr G Loliva, Mr P Rgyapong and Mr T Fall; all associated with the premises itself. Several observers also attended the hearing.

The Legal Advisor to the Sub Committee outlined the procedure of the hearing, noting the submission of the additional document - the Dancers Welfare Pack - and clarifying the Authority's concerns that the document submitted within the application referenced fining of the Dancers which was no longer permitted under Leeds' Statement of Licensing Policy as amended in 2013. In response to a direct question from the Chair, Mr Hughes confirmed that no fines had been levied on the dancers during the previous year. The Licensing Officer then presented the application.

Mr J Hughes then addressed the hearing outlining the renewal application. He stated that Liberté had operated a Sex Establishment Licence for four years and was now well established in the area. The operator had invested a £20k refurbishment during the previous year. Mr Hughes also confirmed that no objections or representations had been made by the responsible authorities and no issues had been raised during visits undertaken by the licensing authority. He also confirmed that issues in respect of staff training and advertising materials (flyers) raised the previous year had been addressed. In conclusion, he referred to the options available to Members when considering such applications and suggested that there were no mandatory or discretionary grounds by which the application could be refused.

Mr Hughes addressed the matter of the submission of the incorrect version of the Dancers Welfare Pack and the Sub Committee discussed the chain of events leading up to the submission of the application and the previous attempts by the Licensing Officer to confirm which version of the document was in use. Mr Hughes reiterated that Liberté and the applicants operated by the standards set out in the version of the Dancers Welfare Pack submitted at the hearing and that no fines had been levied on Dancers during the previous year. His apology for the submission of the incorrect document by the legal team was noted.

The Sub Committee carefully considered the application before them, along with the associated documents and sub missions at the hearing. The Sub Committee had regard to the Statement of Licensing Policy and noted that no representations had been received in respect of the application

RESOLVED - That, having considered the application and associated documents including the additional submission of the current Dancers Welfare Pack, the Application for the annual renewal of the Sex Entertainment Licence for "Liberté" be granted as requested. To clarify:

·  Hours of operation -   Sunday to Thursday  22:00 to 04:00 hours

Friday & Saturday   22:00 to 05:00 hours

·  Conditions - the existing conditions will continue to apply

·  This Licence will expire on 30 September 2016 (twelve months from the expiry of the previous annual Licence)

Additionally, the Sub Committee commented that the applicants should ensure that the existing conditions are kept up to date and available at all times at the premises.