Resolved - That Councillor Steve Niblock be appointed Chair for this meeting.

Members are asked to consider whether they have personal or prejudicial interests in connection with any item(s) on this agenda, and, if so, to declare them and state what they are.

Members were asked to consider whether they had any personal or prejudicial interests in connection with any of the items on the agenda, and, if so, to declare them and state what they were.

No such declarations were made.

The Director of Law, HR and Asset Management reported upon an application that had been received from Merseyside Police for the review of a Premises Licence in respect of Slices (Previously Known as Déjà Vu), 30 Conway Street, Birkenhead, under the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003.

The premises currently had a Premises Licence which allowed the licensable activities as set out in the report.

A copy of the Premises Licence setting out the hours and conditions attached to the licence was available.

The Director advised that the Sub-Committee may, having regard to the application for review and any relevant representations, take such of the following steps as it considered necessary for the promotion of the licensing objectives:

• Modify the Conditions of the Licence.
• Exclude a licensable activity from the scope of the Licence.
• Remove the Designated Premises Supervisor.
• Suspend the Licence for a period not exceeding three months.
• Revoke the Licence.

The Licensing Authority may decide that no action would be necessary if it found that the review did not require it to take any steps necessary to promote the licensing objectives.

The application had been submitted by Merseyside Police when the premises were known as Déjà vu.  At this time the Premises Licence Holder was Purdeep Chahal who was also the Designated Premises Supervisor.  Subsequent to the application being lodged the Premises Licence had been transferred into the name of Mark Taylor and the Designated Premises Supervisor was Karen Hamill.

Merseyside Police had advised that the grounds for review were in relation to the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, prevention of public nuisance and the protection of children from harm following a number of serious incidents that had occurred inside the premises.  The grounds for review also related to a number of breaches of the Premises Licence conditions.

Sergeant Jenkins attended the meeting together with Constable Cottrell.

Mr Mark Taylor, the owner of the premises was also in attendance.

The Licensing Officer reported that all documentation had been sent and received and that no further documentation had been submitted.

Sergeant Jenkins advised that subsequent to submitting the application for review the situation had now changed, that the premises had been closed down and that the view of Merseyside Police was that they would now be seeking to add an additional condition upon the Premises Licence and would not be seeking revocation of the Premises Licence.  He reported that there had been clear evidence that all four of the Licensing Objectives had been compromised and that the management of the premises had been involved in criminal activities.  He indicated that it was the view of Merseyside Police that the Premises Licence Holder had ignored the conditions of the licence and had participated and encouraged the use of illicit drugs within the premises.  He further reported upon a raid that had taken place at the premises on 24 July 2010, three weeks after the premises had been open, which resulted in the closure of the premises and  ...  view the full minutes text for item 41.

The Director of Law, HR and Asset Management reported upon an application that had been received from Vernal Aley for the grant of a Premises Licence in respect of Red Hot Buffet, 15-17 Wallasey Road, Wallasey, under the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003.

The application for the grant of a Premises Licence was for the following hours:

Supply of Alcohol

Sunday to Saturday  09:00 to 01:00

Hours Open to the Public

Sunday to Saturday  09:00 to 01:30

Regulated Entertainment (Live Music, Recorded Music and Anything of a Similar Description)

Sunday to Saturday  09:00 to 01:00

Entertainment Facilities (Facilities for Making Music, Dancing and Anything of a Similar Description)

Sunday to Saturday  09:00 to 01:00

Late Night Refreshment

Sunday to Saturday  23:00 to 01:00

The applicants were required to submit an operating schedule setting out how they would conduct/manage their business in accordance with the four licensing objectives.  A copy of the full application was available.  Members were advised that the proposals set out in the operating schedule may become conditions of the licence should the licence be granted.

A representation had been received from Central Liscard Area Residents Association in respect of this application.  The representation related to public nuisance and anti-social behaviour which was currently a problem within the vicinity of the premises.  Copies of the representations were available.

Mr Aley attended the meeting together with his solicitor Mr Johnson to outline his application.

Mr Hale was also in attendance on behalf of Central Liscard Area Residents Association.

The Licensing Officer confirmed that all documentation had been sent and received.

Mr Johnson addressed the Sub-Committee and explained that the application was for a restaurant with the flexibility to play background music and occasional live music.  The proposal was for an upmarket restaurant in Liscard which would offer a number of different cuisines and which would be targeted at families.  The applicant would be hoping to supply a unique eating experience which would offer Asian, Chinese and Italian food.  Background music would be played at the premises except on occasions where the premises might be hired for a birthday party with a request for a live singer.

Mr Johnson reported upon the applicant’s previous experience which included over twenty years in the licensing trade, five years as a training officer for Whitbread plc, 10 years of running a restaurant in Liverpool and three years of running a business on the Wirral.  The applicant had never received any complaints from local residents or had any issues with Environmental Health or Merseyside Police.  He also reported that the Designated Premises Supervisor had been in the licensing trade for ten years and had held a Personal Licence since March 2007.

Mr Johnson asked that the applicant’s experience be taken into account when considering the application together with his good track record and asked that the application be granted.

Mr Johnson and Mr Aley responded to questions from Members of the Sub-Committee, Mr Hale and Mr Abraham, legal advisor to the Sub-Committee. 

The  ...  view the full minutes text for item 42.