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Policing and Crime Bill

My Lords, it is always a problem when the Government drip-feed amendments through the last stages of a Bill. I rather hope that I have understood what this composite group of amendments, tabled today and on Report, means. I understand that, on Royal Assent, local authorities will be able to choose whether to implement the new regime. If a local authority implements the new regime, the people living in its area will immediately be able to take advantage of the new provisions for taking their concerns into account. That is right and proper. If the local authority considers that the new regime is not necessary in its area, it must, under today’s amendments, still hold a consultation within a year on whether the community that it represents agrees. If the consultation shows that local residents have concerns about lap-dancing venues, the local authority should implement the new regime giving those people the opportunity to have those concerns addressed. If the consultation shows that local residents are, on the other hand, relaxed about lap-dancing clubs, the current licensing system will continue, but the new regime could still be introduced at any point in the future. That is the important point. As the new regime includes an annual review of existing clubs, as well as strict controls on new clubs, any delay in the implementation of the new regime will not prevent objections or concerns from being raised against existing or new venues. Similarly, as the noble Baroness, Lady Harris, knows far better than me, local authorities already have several avenues by which residents can make suggestions and complaints. So even if someone were to miss a consultation, they could still make their feelings known, whether they are for or against the new regime. I, too, received the briefing this morning from the Local Government Association. I ask only that this should not be yet another imposition on local authorities without their being given some sort of monetary recompense for carrying it out.