As reported in the Standard, Westminster City Council has responded sharply to the Mayor of London after he criticised its draft licensing policy for the West End, arguing that the real pressures facing pubs and bars have nothing to do with council licensing at all.
In a letter to the council, Sadiq Khan argued that London's nightlife supports 630,000 jobs and contributes more than £21 billion to the economy each year, and accused Westminster of favouring "a handful of highly vocal residents and councillors" over the wider benefits nightlife brings to the capital. He wants the council to drop its longstanding presumption against granting new licences for pubs, bars, fast food premises and entertainment venues across the West End's Cumulative Impact Zone, which covers Soho, Leicester Square, Covent Garden, Piccadilly Circus and parts of Fitzrovia and Mayfair.
Cllr Tim Barnes, Westminster's Deputy Leader and Cabinet Member for Growth and Planning, rejected the Mayor's framing entirely. He said conversations with pub and bar owners point to rising costs from central government, not licensing, as the industry's real concern, on top of two problems he says sit squarely with City Hall: "Cuts to policing mean people are worried about safety when they go out," and an unreliable public transport network that makes it hard to get home late at night.
The council has again denied planning any ban on people standing up to drink outside pubs in the West End. Its Cumulative Impact Zone policy is instead built around evidence that noise complaints peak between 10 pm and 11 pm, and favours venues that operate earlier in the evening rather than those that rely on a late, high-volume crowd. Premises that do open can still be referred to a licensing review panel if residents complain about noise or disturbance.
Under new legislation, Westminster must now consult City Hall on its licensing plans, though the Mayor cannot yet direct the council's decisions. That is expected to change in the autumn, when he is due to gain powers to "call in" licensing matters directly.
Soho pub licensing row: Westminster hits back at Sadiq Khan over "inadequate policing and public transport"
‘Cuts to policing mean people are worried about safety when they go out’ - Cllr Tim Barnes, deputy leader of Westminster City Council
Cllr Tim Barnes, deputy leader of Westminster City Council and cabinet member for growth and planning, said:
"We talk to pub and bar owners all the time, and their real issue is not licensing - it is the ever-mounting costs being loaded on them by central Government with venues facing rising bills and the increasing cost of employing staff.
"Cuts to policing mean people are worried about safety when they go out and an inadequate public transport network which doesn't allow them to go home when it gets late.
“Both of these are squarely the responsibility of the Mayor's office.
"If the Mayor was genuinely interested in helping the pub industry rather than simply a relentless power grab of licensing laws, he would address the real challenges to the industry."
