Agenda item
Application by Lakhbir Singh T/A Winemart for a variation of condition to enable the sale of high strength beers from 12:00hrs to 01:00hrs Sunday to Thursday and until 03:00hrs Friday & Saturday at Winemart (48 High Road, NW10 2QA), pursuant to the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003.
Minutes:
Responsible Authority
Nick Mortimer Brent Licensing Police
Paul Whitcomb Brent Licensing Police
Michael Sullivan Brent Licensing Police
Applicant
Lakbir Singh Premises Licence Holder and DPS
Marjit Singh
Getenet Akiuk Amera
Decision
That the application by Lakhbir Singh T/A Winemart for a variation of condition 8 to enable the sale of high strength beers from 12:00hrs to 01:00hrs Sunday to Thursday and until 03:00hrs Friday & Saturday at Winemart (48 High Road, NW10 2QA), pursuant to the provisions of the Licensing Act 2003 be granted.
The full record of the Sub-Committee’s decision and the reasons are as set out in the decision letter, set out below.
The application
The Sub-Committee has given careful consideration to an application by the premises licence holder, under section 34 of the Licensing Act 2003, to vary the premises licence relating to Winemart 48 High Road, Willesden NW10 2Q. The applicant has applied for the removal of condition number eight (8) which reads ‘No high strength beers lagers and ciders above 5.5% ABV shall be stocked with the exception of Guinness Foreign Stout and Dragon Stout’ and that this be reworded to read ‘No high strength beers lagers and ciders above 9% ABV shall be stocked as well as the following brands: Kesteral Super, Skol Super, Tennants Super, Special Brew, K Cider, Strongbow Super, Ace Cider, Okocim Black, Crest Super and Warka Strong.’ Mr Lakhbir Singh is the premises licence holder and the designated premises supervisor (DPS). The premises are currently licensed for the sale of alcohol and to remain open from 12:00hrs to 01:00hrs Sunday to Thursday and until 03:00hrs Friday & Saturday.
The police objected to the application raising concerns about the following licensing objectives: prevention of crime and disorder, public nuisance. The Police stated that street drinking is a major concern in Brent so much so that the entire Borough remains a controlled drinking zone and that street drinking is a trigger for crime, disorder and nuisance in the community. The Police alleged that street drinking in and around the vicinity of the applicant’s premises remains an issue. The Police referred the Sub Committee to several crime reports which included people drinking in the toilets of a betting shop on High Road Willesden and alcohol being seized from street drinkers in and around Willesden High Road. The Police informed the Sub Committee that numerous discarded alcoholic tin cans had been found on the floor of the alleyway between Ellis Close NW10 which is directly in front of the Winemart and Richmond Avenue NW10 and referred to the photographs contained within the document pack.
The Police reported that PC McDonald had visited the premises in January 2015 and found staff selling ‘vast amounts’ of high strength alcohol above 5.5%ABV breaching condition 8 of the premises licence. PC McDonald issued Mr Singh with a warning letter. A further Police visit was made to the premises on 24 September 2015 during which they found 19 beers lagers and ciders over 5.5%ABV on sale along with numerous other breaches of the premises licence. Mr Singh was issued with a final written warning. The Police visited the premises again on 7 December 2015 to speak to the applicant who was not there. The Police found one high strength product on display, no personal licence holder present, and that staff had not been given cash minimisation training amongst other breaches.
The full details of the application made by the premises licence holder as well as the police objection amongst other information, is contained within the document pack attached to the Agenda for our meeting. This information is publicly available and is therefore not repeated in detail in our decision notice.
The hearing
Mr Lakhbir Singh attended the hearing.
PC Paul Whitcomb represented the Police.
The decision
We have listened to all the representations and have read all the material.
We have had regard to the statutory guidance issued under section 182 of the Licensing Act 2003, and the Council’s own licensing policy.
We have taken into account our duty under section 17 of the Crime and Disorder Act 1998 to have due regard to the likely effect of the exercise of our discretion on, and the need to do all we reasonably can, to prevent crime and disorder in our area and the misuse of alcohol.
We confirm that in making our decision we have sought to promote the licensing objectives.
We also confirm that we have imposed further regulation only if satisfied that it was necessary, proportionate and appropriate to do so and justified on the facts of this particular case.
On the facts of this application, it is particularly noteworthy that, according to statutory guidance, we should accept all reasonable and proportionate representations made by the Police unless we have evidence that to do so would not be appropriate for the promotion of the licensing objectives. However, it remains incumbent on the Police to ensure that their representations can withstand the scrutiny to which they would be subject at a hearing.
We found that the evidence submitted by the Police demonstrated concerns about the management of the premises and nuisance being caused by street drinkers in the area. The Police had informed the Sub Committee that they had worked extremely hard and in partnership with others to lessen the problem of street drinking in and around Willesden High Road and that one of the major hot spots in the past had been the area outside of Willesden Library which is very close to the premises. The Police confirmed that if the application were to be granted it would fuel street drinking in the area.
During the course of the hearing we heard evidence from Mr Singh. Mr Singh told the Sub Committee that he had been a licensee for over 20 years and had lived in Willesden for most of his life. Mr Singh stated that he agreed with the Police in so far as there are issues in the area with cheap super strength beers being brought and consumed by street drinkers and considered that both the Police and Brent Licensing Team had done a very good job in cleaning up the area. However, he is running a bespoke off-License which is well established and maintained and sells high quality wines and champagnes. He does not sell super strength beers and has no intention of doing so.
Mr Singh went on to explain that Willesden is an up and coming affluent area and that his clientele are not street drinkers. To the contrary he sources fine wines for customers. The beers he now wishes to stock and sell are premium beers for which there is a growing market for these high quality products which cost £2.50 to £3.00 or more a bottle, unlike the cheaper high strength super beers that retail around £1.00 to £1.50 a can which the street drinkers drink. Mr Singh stated that some of these premium beers are sold in Sainsbury’s/Tescos and other large retail outlets, but are not generally available in smaller shops like his. Customers are now asking for these premium beers, the majority of which are around 6-7%ABV with the exception of a couple which are 9%.
The Police responded to the evidence from Mr Singh stating that confusion had arisen from the way in which the application had been worded which implied that Mr Singh did wish to sell super high strength beers above 5.5%ABV. Nevertheless the Police remained of the view that granting an application for the sale of certain beers of up to 9%ABV would set a dangerous precedent and that coupled with the number of breaches of conditions on the licence within a 12 month period, the Police felt on balance that the application should still be refused.
We took note of evidence from the Police in that historically the area in and around Willesden Library had been a notorious hot spot for street drinking, however this has not re-occurred. We were mindful of Police concerns of the risk of this happening again. The Sub Committee duly noted the various breaches in relation to the operation of the premises licence and would remind Mr Singh that he must comply with all the conditions attached to the licence and not just when prompted by the Police or authorised officers of the Council. We acknowledge that the application is badly worded which has led to confusion.
We have decided to grant the application to vary condition 8 of the premises licence as follows:
The sale of bottled premium beers of up to 7%ABV Plus
Duvel Belgian Ale 8.5%ABV
Chimay Beer 9%ABV
Torpedo Beer 7.2%ABV
These bottled products shall be displayed in a separate chiller . Cans of beer, lagers, ciders (including bottled ciders) of 6%ABV and above shall not be stocked or sold.
The effective date of this decision
This decision takes effect immediately.
Right of Appeal
The parties have a right of appeal to Brent Magistrates’ Court against this decision.
If you wish to appeal you must notify Brent Magisrtrates’ Court within a period of 21 days starting with the day on which the Council notified you of this decision.
Supporting documents:
- Variation - Winemart 48 High Road NW10 2QA, item 2. PDF 47 KB
- Winemart - Application, item 2. PDF 441 KB
- Winemart - Police Rep, item 2. PDF 131 KB
- Winemart - Evidence 1, item 2. PDF 165 KB
- Winemart - Evidence 2, item 2. PDF 114 KB
- Winemart - warning letter, item 2. PDF 151 KB
- Winemart - Licence, item 2. PDF 323 KB
- Winemart OS Map, item 2. PDF 883 KB