4. Complaints and enforcement
- Where possible and appropriate the Council will give early warning to licence holders of any concerns about problems identified at premises and of the need for improvement.
- The Council is responsible for the administration and enforcement of the licensing regime and will have regard to the Department of Business Enterprise and Regulatory Reform’s Regulators’ Compliance Code, the Better Regulation Commission’s five Principles of Good Regulation and the Licensing Service's own enforcement policy. The Council will carry out its regulatory functions in a fair, open and consistent manner.
- Specifically, the Council is committed to:
- be proportionate – to only intervene when necessary and remedies will be appropriate to the risk posed
- be accountable – to justify decisions, be subject to public scrutiny and allow opportunities to resolve differences before enforcement action is taken, unless immediate action is needed
- be consistent – to implement rules and standards fairly
- be transparent – to be open and to provide clear explanations of what is needed, by when and the rights of appeal
- target its regulatory action at cases in which action is needed
- The Council recognises the interests of both citizens and businesses and will work closely, with partners, to assist licence holders to comply with the law and the conditions attached to the licence. However, proportionate but firm action will be taken against those who commit serious offences or consistently break the law or breach the conditions of the licence.
- The Council has set clear standards of service and performance that the public and businesses can expect. In particular, an enforcement policy has been created that explains how the Council will undertake its role and how the principles of effective enforcement will be achieved.
- This policy is freely available from the licensing service as are details of the corporate complaints procedures.