Taxi laws need updating to tackle child sexual abuse, say councils – The Guardian
‘Taxi laws need urgently updating to combat child sexual exploitation, councils have warned.’
The Guardian, 25th August 2017
Source: www.theguardian.com
Category: licensing
Lettings agency to pay £20k-plus after prosecution over sham licences – Local Government Lawyer
‘A lettings agency has been ordered to pay more than £20,000 in fines, compensation and costs after issuing ‘sham licences’ to renters and using a letting agency association logo when it was not a member, in what is thought to be the first prosecution of its kind in England.’
Local Government Lawyer, 21st August 2017
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Government to consider laser pen licence after attack rise – BBC News
‘Buying powerful laser pens could require a licence in future, the government has said, amid concerns over the number of attacks on aircraft.’
BBC News, 12th August 2017
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
High Court judge upholds grant by council of licence to puppy farm – Local Government Lawyer
‘North Kesteven District Council acted correctly when licensing a controversial puppy farm, a High Court judge has ruled.’
Local Government Lawyer, 8th August 2017
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Controlled drugs, religion and Article 9: Beneficent Spiritist Center União Do Vegetal – Law & Religion UK
‘The Beneficent Spiritist Center União do Vegetal is a religion with Christian and reincarnationist foundations; its declared objective to contribute to the spiritual development of the human being and the improvement of his or her intellectual qualities and moral virtues, without distinction of race, sex, creed, social class or nationality. In its rituals it uses hoasca tea (also known as ayahuasca). The tea is prepared from two Amazonian plants: the Mariri vine (Banisteriopsis caapi) and the leaves of the Chacrona bush (Psicotria viridis). In the União do Vegetal (UDV), hoasca tea is also known as “vegetal”; and the congregations drink it for the purpose of mental concentration. The plant materials from which the tea is made contain dimethyltryptamine (DMT), a class A controlled drug under the Misuse of Drugs Act 1971 [1-3].’
Law & Religion UK, 31st July 2017
Source: www.lawandreligionuk.com
Ofcom bans Iman FM radio station over broadcasts of al-Qaida cleric – The Guardian
‘A local radio station in Sheffield has been taken off air by Ofcom after it broadcast 25 hours of lectures by an alleged former al-Qaida leader.’
The Guardian, 28th July 2017
Source: www.theguardian.com
Birmingham strip club facing criminal probe after ‘customers were offered sex, drugged and ripped off’ – Daily Telegraph
‘Critical joint police and licensing report alleges ‘serious criminality’ at the city centre club.’
Daily Telegraph, 27th July 2017
Source: www.independent.co.uk
Council victorious in appeal over sex shop licensing fees – OUT-LAW.com
‘Westminster City Council can recover “reasonable” licensing fees and enforcement costs charged to various sex shops in Soho, London, even though these fees were later found to be in breach of an EU directive, the UK’s highest court has ruled.’
OUT-LAW.com, 21st July 2017
Source: www.out-law.com
Westminster Council wins Hemming appeal at the Supreme Court – Local Government Lawyer
‘The City of Westminster Council has won a key victory at the Supreme Court in the long-running battle over the level of fees that local authorities can charge licensed premises.’
Local Government Lawyer, 20th July 2017
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Chugai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd v UCB Pharma SA and another; Chugai Pharmaceutical Co Ltd v UCB Biopharma SPRL – WLR Daily
‘The first defendant in the first of two claims entered into a licence with the claimant in respect of a portfolio of patents, including a US patent, concerning tocilizumab, an immunosuppressive drug. The claimant sought, inter alia, a declaration that it was not obliged to continue to pay royalties under the licence in respect of its tocilizumab products. The defendants alleged that, although framed as a claim for a declaration relating to a contract, a part of the proceedings, in substance, concerned not only the scope but also the validity of the US patent. Accordingly, consideration of the claim would infringe the territorial limits of the courts jurisdictional powers and constitute an affront to comity (“the Moçambique rule”) and/or the foreign act of state doctrine, which militated against the English court determining issues relating to sovereign acts of a foreign state.’
WLR Daily, 26th May 2017
Source: www.iclr.co.uk
Court of Appeal confirms right of Gambling Commission to veto gambling in pubs – OUT-LAW.com
‘The Gambling Commission in Britain can prevent pubs from providing gambling services to consumers even if those pubs satisfy the criteria necessary for obtaining an operating licence, the Court of Appeal in London has confirmed.’
OUT-LAW.com, 26th May 2017
Source: www.out-law.com
Landlords found guilty after housing 31 people in four-bed home – Local Government Lawyer
‘Three family members who received £112,000 a year by housing 31 people into a four-bedroom home in Wembley, have been found guilty of breaching landlord licensing rules.’
Local Government Lawyer, 24th May 2017
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
Uber faces legal threat from union over London licence – The Guardian
‘Uber has come under further pressure in London after a union threatened legal action if the capital’s transport authority renews the taxi app’s licence without guaranteeing more rights for drivers.’
The Guardian, 16th May 2017
Source: www.guardian.co.uk
Revised ‘section 182’ guidance issued to help curb illegal working at licensed premises – OUT-LAW.com
‘The UK government has issued new guidance to help local authorities meet duties to check that people selling alcohol in licensed premises in England and Wales are entitled to work in the country.’
OUT-LAW.com, 11th April 2017
Source: www.out-law.com
Immigration checks now required for grant of premises licences – Local Government Lawyer
‘New powers to prevent illegal working in premises that sell alcohol or provide late night refreshment have come into force in England and Wales.’
Local Government Lawyer, 10th April 2017
Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk
New powers to tackle illegal working in licensed premises – Home Office
‘New powers to prevent illegal working in premises that sell alcohol or provide late night refreshment have come into force in England and Wales today.’
Home Office, 6th April 2017
Source: www.gov.uk/home-office
Licensing Act review committee calls for ‘radical comprehensive overhaul’ – OUT-LAW.com
‘Licensing laws in England and Wales should be changed to give local planning authorities responsibility for determining the rights of businesses to sell alcohol on their premises, according to a House of Lords committee.’
OUT-LAW.com, 4th April 2017
Source: www.out-law.com
UK should follow minimum alcohol price, say Lords – BBC News
‘Minimum unit pricing for alcohol should be rolled out across the UK if Scotland’s scheme is successful, a Lords committee says.’
BBC News, 4th April 2017
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
Drivers given taxi licences despite criminal convictions – BBC News
‘Hundreds of taxi drivers have been granted licences despite declaring criminal convictions for sex offences, burglary and assault, figures show.’
BBC News, 31st March 2017
Source: www.bbc.co.uk
