Draft Licensing Act 2003 (Coronation Licensing Hours) Order 2023

Wendy Morton Excerpts

Monday 27th March 2023 General Committees

[The Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for the Home Department (Miss Sarah Dines)]

I beg to move,

That the Committee has considered the draft Licensing Act 2003 (Coronation Licensing Hours) Order 2023.

It is an honour to appear before you, Mr Stringer, even if a little untimely, and a pleasure to serve under your chairmanship.

The draft order will have the effect of extending licensing hours to mark the coronation of His Majesty the King. It is a great privilege to stand in Committee today in my capacity as a Home Office Minister to discuss a piece of legislation that is designed to facilitate a period of joy and celebration for our country. The coronation is an occasion of profound significance. A great many people will, I am sure, want to gather together and to raise a glass to His Majesty the King.

Under section 172 of the Licensing Act 2003, the Secretary of State can make an order relaxing licensing hours to mark occasions of exceptional national significance. I am sure that Members across the Committee will agree that the coronation is just such an occasion.

The Home Office conducted a public consultation to seek the views of the public. The majority of responses were in favour of the licensing extension. The responses also agreed with the proposed duration and location, and that the extension should apply only to sales of alcohol for consumption on the premises. The draft order is therefore to extend licensing hours in England and Wales on Friday 5 May, Saturday 6 May and Sunday 7 May until 1 am the following morning.

[Wendy Morton (Aldridge-Brownhills) (Con)]

I have no desire to slow down proceedings and, as I am sure the Committees appreciates, I wholeheartedly support this piece of delegated legislation—in fact, like most Members present, I am sure I will be out celebrating as well—but I have a specific question to ask the Minister. Where a licence has been revoked or suspended, will that suspension remain in place?

[Miss Dines]

That is a technical point to which I shall revert a little later.

The extension will apply to premises, licences and club premises certificates in England and Wales that license the sale of alcohol for consumption on the premises only, as mentioned. Such premises will be allowed to remain open without having to notify the licensing authority via a temporary event notice. The draft order covers only sales for consumption on the premises after 11 pm; it does not cover premises that sell alcohol for consumption off the premises, such as off-licences and supermarkets.

Premises that are licensed to provide regulated entertainment will be able to do so until 1 am on the nights covered by the draft order, even where those premises are not licensed to sell alcohol. That includes, for example, venues holding music events or dances, as well as theatres and cinemas.

Premises that supply late-night refreshment—the supply of hot food or drinks to the public between the hours of 11 pm and 5 am—but which do not sell alcohol for consumption on the premises, will not be covered by the draft order. Such premises will only be able to provide late-night refreshment until 1 am if their existing licence already permits it.

To revert to the matter raised by my right hon. Friend the Member for Aldridge-Brownhills, yes, revocations will remain in place and are unaffected by the draft order. I hope that that gives her some comfort for her constituent.

His Majesty the King’s coronation promises to be a joyous and uplifting occasion. A mood of celebration will descend across the country, and it is in that spirit that we seek this extension of licensing hours. I therefore commend the draft order to the Committee.