Agenda and minutes

The Panel is requested to elect a Chairman for the hearing in line with rules agreed by the Licensing and Safety Committee. 

Councillor Mrs Diane Chambers was elected Chairman for this meeting.

Apologies for absence were received from Councillor Etheridge and also from Councillor Kemp as the fourth Member. Councillor Fearn joined the Panel in place of Councillor Etheridge.

To agree that the Chairman, after consultation with the other members of the Panel, sign the record of this meeting outside the meeting. 

It was agreed that the Chairman, after consultation with the other members of the Panel, would sign the record of this meeting outside the meeting.

There were none. 

Members are invited to disclose any Disclosable Pecuniary Interests or Other Significant Interests in accordance with the Member Code of Conduct.  Guidance on this is set out in agenda item 5.

Disclosable pecuniary interests

There were none.

Other significant interests (OSIs)

There were none.

Other interests

There were none.

The applicant has applied for a new Premises Licence in respect of EuniStar Healthcare & Afro Caribbean Store, 113 High Street, Gillingham, Kent, ME7 4QT. All responsible authorities have been consulted in line with the Licensing Act 2003. Representations have been received from the Police, Public Health, Licensing Enforcement and a Ward Councillor. No agreements have been reached. 

Discussion:

The Chairman asked those present to introduce themselves and explained the process that the hearing would follow, as outlined in the agenda.

The Licensing Officer stated that, in accordance with the Licensing Act 2003, the Council had received an application for a new premises licence for the supply of alcohol off the premises from Monday to Saturday between 10:00 hours and 22:00 hours, in respect of Eunistar Healthcare and Afro Caribbean Store, 113 High Street, Gillingham, Kent, ME7 4QT. She confirmed that the application had been correctly advertised in the local press and notices had been displayed at the premises for the required timescale.

The Licensing Officer stated that, in accordance with section 9.14 of the Amended Guidance to the Licensing Act 2003, discussion had been held with the Council’s Planning Service. She confirmed that the premises had no planning history and that class of use or hours could not therefore be confirmed.

The Licensing Officer advised that the matter had been put to the Licensing Hearing Panel because the Council had received representations from Kent Police, Public Health, the Licensing Unit and a Councillor. The objections raised were relevant representations and related to all four of the Licensing Objectives. No agreement between the parties had been reached.

The Chairman invited the applicant to present the application for a premises licence. Dr Emeakaroha said that he understood the issues affecting Gillingham High Street and the impact that street drinking have on the community. He advised the Panel that many members of ethnic minority groups had visited his Afro Caribbean grocery store to ask if it could sell Afro Caribbean beers. Of the specific brands that Dr Emeakaroha wished to stock, only one, a Guinness product, was available at other stores locally. Dr Emeakaroha said that he wished to provide choice so that people did not have to go to London to get their preferred brands. He considered this to be a reasonable request from an ethic minority group.

Dr Emeakaroha said that he understood the need to adhere to the Licensing Policy in order to protect the community and that he would work with the Council and the Police to help promote a safe, inclusive society.

During questioning by the objectors, Dr Emeakaroha said that he would only be selling the brands of beers identified in the supplementary information he had provided (attached to the agenda as Appendix B) and would not be selling spirits. He considered that the cost of these products would deter street drinkers. He explained that CCTV would be in operation and that any customers who appeared to be under age would be asked to provide ID. Asked to identify other areas of concern, given that the premises were located within an area where the Council’s Cumulative Impact Policy applied, Dr Emeakaroha listed nuisance, noise and environmental impact. These would be addressed through the provision of CCTV and recycling at the premises. He was confident that, through proper controls, the Licensing Objectives would be promoted  ...  view the full minutes text for item 1044.

It is recommended that the Panel exclude the press and public from the meeting during the decision-making process for the reasons set out in the report. 

Decision:

The press and public were excluded from the meeting during the Panel’s deliberations and decision making in respect of agenda item 6, because consideration of this matter in public would disclosure information falling within paragraph 5 of Part 1 of Schedule 12A to the Local Government Act 1972, as specified in agenda item 7 (Exclusion of the Press and Public) and, in all the circumstances of the case, the Panel considered that the public interest in maintaining the exemption outweighed the public interest in disclosing the information.