Agenda and minutes

It was resolved to exclude the public and press for the remainder of the meeting by reason of the nature of the business to be discussed which included information exempt from publication by virtue of paragraph 7 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972 (as amended).

The Council’s Licensing Officer, Ms Samena Baloch, presented a report in respect of an application made on 16 February 2021 on behalf of the Council’s Licensing Authority Responsible Authority Officer (LARAO) submitted under Sections 51 of the Licensing Act 2003. This concerned a review of the premises licence of the Victoria Pub, Axe Street, Barking IG11 7NA, under the Licensing Objectives of ‘The Prevention of Crime and Disorder’ and ‘Public Safety’.

The application related to an incident which took place on Thursday 28 January 2021 at the premises used by the Designated Premises Supervisor (DPS). The incident breached the business closure restrictions introduced to help control the spread of Covid-19, at a time when no licensable activities were permitted.The review application was also supported by a representation from the Metropolitan Police.

The Committee first heard the representation of the LARAO, who stated that the severity of the incident was heightened by the attitude of the DPS and the fact that the premises had operated with disregard to government directions in relation to Covid-19. In doing so, the premises were potentially perpetuating the spread of the virus, therefore placing those present and the local community generally at risk and placing the NHS under increased pressure.

Whilst the current premises license holder (PLH), W H Brakspear and Son, initially indicated that they took the matter seriously and would voluntarily suspend the premises licence and replace the DPS, they also stated that it would be left to the responsibility of the current DPS to find a new general manager, who would take over the control of the premises. Whilst it was stated that the new general manager would not be the partner of the DPS, no timescale nor indication was given by the company themselves that they would take control of the matter. As such, the review had been submitted partly because of the seriousness of the January incident, but also to ensure that the PLH took full responsibility and to ensure that timely effective action took place.

The Committee then heard the representation of the Metropolitan Police Licensing Officer (MPLO), who provided an overview of the incident that he had witnessed, as well as the misinformation provided to the Police. It was stated that the DPS had also admitted to the Police that gatherings of this nature had been occurring for a number of weeks prior to Police attendance. As a breach of Covid-19 regulations was a criminal offence, the DPS along with those present on 28 January 2021 had been reported to the Police and issued with fines. The DPS was said to have directly undermined the licensing objectives of ‘The Prevention of Crime and Disorder’ and ‘Public Safety’ and the impact of a Covid breach was particularly severe when considering that the Borough had at one point, had the highest Covid-19 infection rates across London.

The MPLO also stated that he had previously visited the venue on 14 May 2020 due to a noise report and had provided the  ...  view the full minutes text for item 14.