'Primary Authority' to apply (in part) to Licensing Act 2003

In November 2013, we reported that ‘Primary Authority’ was to be extended to include fire safety (see our previous article here). As a reminder, ‘Primary Authority’ allows businesses to form a partnership with a single local authority in relation to certain legislation or specific functions, which can lead to greater consistency in regulation and enforcement.

The Co-ordination of Regulatory Enforcement (Enforcement Action) (Amendment) Order 2014 (we did not come up with the name!), which comes into effect on 6 April 2014, will now also apply to the following parts of the Licensing Act 2003:

• Section 146 - sale of alcohol to children;
• Section 147 - allowing the sale of alcohol to children;
• Section 147A - persistently selling alcohol to children;
• Section 148 - sale of liqueur confectionery to children under 16; and
• Section 151 - delivering alcohol to children.

These elements will therefore also fall within Primary Authority from that date.

This effectively means that enforcement action against a businesss by a local authority under the above sections of the Licenisng Act 2003 will first have to be approved by the Primary Authority (if there is one).

If you would like further detail or advice, please contact us.