Cities of London & Westminster MP Nickie Aiken backed our hospitality sector during a debate on the Licensing Hours Extensions Bill.
The Bill would move to simplify the process for extending licensing hours at times of national significance when Parliament is in recess. Occasions such as the Olympics, Paralympics, Football World Cup, the Euros, the Ashes, Coronations, and Royal Weddings.
Currently, businesses must apply for a Temporary Event Notice. It's a bureaucratic nightmare costing local authorities money and requires applicants to give ten days' notice at a cost to the premises of £21 for each occasion used, and they may only apply for them up to ten times a year. In the Two Cities, pubs and late-night venues employ over 22,000 people and turn over £1bn each year.
To support them, we need to move to a simplified process to extend licences for significant events. However, Nickie is clear that local people must continue to have their say and be properly consulted on any changes.
That's the case Nickie made in the Commons. Watch what she had to say in the video above.
