Agenda and minutes

To seek nominations for the election for the position of Chair.

RESOLVED: To elect Councillor Hutchison to the Chair for the duration of the meeting.

To consider any appeals in accordance with Procedure Rule 15.2 of the Access to Information Procedure Rules (in the event of an Appeal the press and public will be excluded)

(*In accordance with Procedure Rule 15.2, written notice of an appeal must be received by the Head of Governance and Scrutiny Support at least 24 hours before the meeting)

There were no appeals against the refusal of inspection of documents.

1)  To highlight reports or appendices which:

a)  officers have identified as containing exempt information, and where officers consider that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighs the public interest in disclosing the information, for the reasons outlined in the report.

b)  To consider whether or not to accept the officers recommendation in respect of the above information.

c)  If so, to formally pass the following resolution:-

  RESOLVED – That the press and public be excluded from the meeting during consideration of those parts of the agenda designated as containing exempt information on the grounds that it is likely, in view of the nature of the business to be transacted or the nature of the proceedings, that if members of the press and public were present there would be disclosure to them of exempt information

2)  To note that under the Licensing Procedure rules, the press and the public will be excluded from that part of the hearing where Members will deliberate on each application as it is in the public interest to allow the Members to have a full and frank debate on the matter before them.

There were no exempt items.

There were no late items, however the Committee received three supplementary packs relating to Agenda Item 7.

To disclose or draw attention to any interests in accordance with Leeds City Council’s ‘Councillor Code of Conduct’.

There were no declarations of interests.

To receive and consider the attached report of the Chief Officer, Elections and Regulatory.

The Committee received an  application for the certification of a film, Araya, to be screened at City Varieties, Swan Street, Leeds, LS1 6LW on 1^st November 2022.

Attending the hearing was:

Wendy Cook – applicant

David Spereall – journalist

Ms Cook provided the Committee with further details on the film’s content, which included small amounts of nudity within a domestic context and in keeping with the BBFC classification guidelines for the recommended U rating. The Committee noted these comments.

RESOLVED: That the film Araya shall be rated U.

To receive and consider the report of the Chief Officer, Elections and Regulatory, regarding an application for the grant of a premises license for Shimlas Leeds, Ltd 293 Roundhay Road, Leeds, LS8 4HS.

The Committee considered the report of the Chief Officer, Elections and Regulatory, regarding an application for the grant of a premises license for Shimlas Leeds Ltd, 293 Roundhay Road, Leeds, LS8 4HS.

In attendance were:

Rashid Moghul: the applicant’s representative

Claire Simms: Environmental Protection Team (EPT)

Vanessa Holyroyd: EPT

David Spereall: journalist

Prior to the meeting, the Committee had received three supplementary packs from the applicant.

Further to the application and the subsequent revised operating schedule provided, the activities applied for were as follows:

Late Night Refreshment

Sunday to Thursday 23:00 – 01:00

   Friday and Saturday 23:00 – 02:00

 Performance of Recorded Music

   Monday to Sunday 10:00 – 23:30

Opening times of the premises

Sunday to Thursday 10:00 – 01:00

Friday and Saturday 10:00 – 02:00

Shimlas is a Kashmiri restaurant located on Roundhay Road, predominantly catering towards families during the evenings. Members noted that the Harehills Cumulative Impact Assessment does not apply due to there being no proposed alcohol sales.

Mr Moghul supplied several reasons why the applicant needs later opening times, which included rising produce and energy costs and needing to reduce waste. The customer base they wish to appeal to with these opening times includes taxi drivers.

The Committee heard the representation by Mr Moghul which outlined several reasons why the public representations against the application were flawed which included the possibility of local ward councillors having links with a local takeaway business. No interests were found within the Member Register of Interests, which was checked during the meeting. The Members noted the comments.

Ms Simms, on behalf of the Environmental Protection Team, outlined her objection to the application. This included:

• The area is mixed use, with both residential and commercial premises

• The premises is already able to operate until 11pm

• Insufficient evidence of how the licensing objective of ‘prevention of public nuisance’ will be met

• As the premises is open seven days a week, music playing until 12am or later could prove a nuisance

• It would be harder to deal with complaints once a licence has been granted

• The only mitigation for sound issues had been a couple of signs placed in the premises

• Delivery hours are restricted to 10pm, however this does not apply to third party delivery apps

• No other restaurants in the area have a similar licence, and therefore there could be issues if a precedent is set

Entertainment Licensing and Legal Services confirmed that the intention of the premises to provide background music is ancillary to the primary reason for attending the premises. Therefore the performance of record music under this circumstance is not a licenceable activity.

Members questioned EPT on what influences different premises nearby being offered different closing times. Reasons included some premises being awarded their licence under the previous licensing regime, some being on the main road and away from residential properties.

Mr Moghul was asked if the applicant would be willing to accept the following opening times, as  ...  view the full minutes text for item 7.