A former licensing sergeant has branded Wirral council “disgraceful” and accused it of flouting licensing laws in its bid to roll out a Reducing the Strength scheme in the area. Paul Douglas, who now works for off-licences in the north west of England as a licensing expert, has been defending a client who was forced to join the scheme after trying to resist.  The story…

Retailers have been urged not to put profit before people after officers seized 370 bottles of knock-off wine from two stores in Lincolnshire. Both AK News and The Grocery Shop in Ingoldmells were let off with a warning at a licensing review hearing after officers seized contraband wine in a raid. The owner of The Grocery Store admitted buying the wine from a man he…

Retailers could be entitled to compensation from councils that illegally enforce bans on certain products following a landmark case where loss of earnings put a store on the brink of closure. Legal advisers acting for Shabir Mohammed, owner of Lifestyle Express in Newcastle, said he planned to pursue the local authority after he lost £280,000 when he was banned from selling beers and ciders above…

Trade associations have slammed the government for forcing through a raft of changes to licensing law guidance that will embolden draconian local councils. Councils have been trying to introduce minimum unit pricing through the back door, penalise off-licences in areas where they feel binge drinking is rife and bully retailers into adopting Reducing the Strength schemes, and the trade associations feel the changes will buoy…

The market is recovering and off- trade sales are surging as drinkers forgo the pub in favour of a tipple at home, so now might be a good time to open a new store. But if you are considering this there are various legalities you need to be aware of, one of which is a fundamental asset – the premises licence. I recently acted for…

If you are involved in the retail of alcohol off the premises it is highly likely that you are aware of the schemes now in place in many parts of the country banning retailers from selling various beer and cider brands that have an abv of 5.5{7c69fd72f8e2bab9ee87ef5a2685d86c0107c79a8a610a3574925e3ec9a3ba47} and above. Momentum for such schemes is gathering, with nearly 90 now under way, and the police and councils…

Councils are using statistics on 999 callouts, hospital admissions and crime to ban retailers from selling alcohol in “binge-drinking hotspots”. Islington and Camden councils in London have adopted a scheme pioneered in Cardiff, and Islington has already refused 13 licensing applications and modified two others. Cllr Janet Burgess, Islington Council’s deputy leader, told OLN: “By getting this data to map hotspots we are using it…