Hansard

We had information and data from a number of years about air weapons offences. We are all far too aware of the deaths and injuries that have taken place and the maiming of animals that has gone on across the country. That information gave us a good guide and is why I and the committee think that the air weapons licensing regime should be put in place.

As I said, we heard from a wide range of individuals and took a wide range of evidence. I thank all those who responded for the part that they played in helping us to examine the bill’s proposals.

Committee members had the opportunity to inform ourselves on the constituent subject areas. We held a number of informal meetings with academics, industry representatives and licensing experts to aid our understanding. I thank former committee members Mark McDonald, Stuart McMillan and Anne McTaggart for their work in exploring the various strands. They put in a huge amount of effort in doing so. While thanking members past, I will also mention the new committee members, as it was Clare Adamson, Cara Hilton and Willie Coffey who picked up the baton and carried it to the finishing line. We held nine themed evidence sessions and heard from the cabinet secretary, culminating in our stage 1 report being unanimously agreed to and published.

Before I move on to the specifics of our scrutiny and recommendations, I will say a little about the committee’s engagement activities. Engagement is a key priority for our committee. We have had close to 4,000 new engagements with ordinary people, over and above the well-kent faces. Many hold views on local government, and people need to be encouraged to share those views with us. Engagement is a long-term relationship in which trust is earned.

We published a promoted Facebook post on taxis and private hire cars in the Highland area because a gap had been identified in the information that we had and we needed to seek further views. That post was shared by 56 people. Our YouTube video on taxis and private hire cars was also a success; it amassed close to 1,000 views, which demonstrates the public’s level of interest in the topic. Comments that we received fed directly into our thinking on the bill proposals.

Responses to our video suggested that, in the minds of users, taxis and private hire cars are to all intents and purposes the same. One of our principal recommendations is that the Scottish Government should consider a full review of all aspects of taxi and hire car licensing because, if a licensing system was being designed now, it would—in our opinion—be implemented differently.

Our experience of engagement has shown us that, to be successful, engagement has to be well targeted, relevant and accessible. People have to feel that they are being listened to, and the value of their comments needs to be demonstrated. Only then will we encourage the quieter voices to enter the discussion.

I preface my comments on our findings by saying that we support moves to license air weapons and to have a separate licensing regime for sexual entertainment venues. We have made a few recommendations on how to improve those proposed regimes, although others may like to comment on those aspects.

I will concentrate on some of our key recommendations concerning the alcohol, taxi and private hire car, and metal dealer provisions. The alcohol provisions in part 2 of the bill contain a number of proposals, but I shall focus on two areas—determining overprovision of alcohol and alcohol licensing objectives. Our recommendations on those areas explicitly link to the overriding objectives of advancing public health and preserving public order and safety.

I will give a little background on overprovision. Licensing policy statements must contain a statement as to whether there is overprovision of licensed premises in any locality in a licensing board’s area. The bill would change the definition of overprovision to enable licensing boards to consider licensed hours as well as the number and capacity of licensed premises. It would also clarify that the whole of a board’s area can be classed as a locality for the purposes of carrying out the assessment. Trade bodies firmly opposed those changes and questioned their proportionality. On the other hand, the police, health boards and alcohol and drug partnerships strongly supported the changes. We support the latter group and would go further in efforts to reduce the harm that alcohol can cause to some.

On licensing statements, we heard suggestions that professional organisers abuse the occasional licence system to evade the requirements for fully licensed premises and that such events add to the overprovision of alcohol in an area. A similar concern was raised about members clubs. Alcohol Focus Scotland observed that, in the Borders,

“22% of all licensed premises are members’ clubs.”

We therefore recommend that club licences and occasional licences must be included when licensing boards assess provision.

Given the overwhelming evidence that we received of harm and links to disorder from overconsumption, we also recommend that an additional licensing objective be added to the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 to include the reduction of alcohol consumption.

We spoke to a number of organisations and individuals involved in the taxi and private hire car trade and to those who license it. Changes in the market from the advent of hire car booking apps must take place in a framework that recognises the fundamental principle that licensed drivers in licensed vehicles are the ones who folk can safely use. We want to ensure that the public know that when they call, hail or use an app to get a car, they are entering a licensed vehicle with a licensed driver. Further reasons for licensing include the delivery of an accessible, reliable and affordable service to customers while preventing opportunities for criminal activity. Police Scotland told us that regulation

“ensures that legitimate business thrives and provides opportunity to prevent organised crime groups from gaining a foothold in this industry.”

Licensing of metal dealers is extremely important. Metal theft is not a victimless crime and we have heard that it not only costs people a great deal of money but has created dangers. We must ensure that the maximum penalty for breaching licensing conditions is uprated from the current sum of £5,000.

I hope that my speech provided a flavour of the range of issues that the committee encountered in scrutinising the bill and that it set out some of the areas of the bill that we wish to be strengthened. Licensing is important to the lives of us all: it keeps us safe, cares for our health and reduces the opportunity for crime in our communities. I commend the committee’s stage 1 report to the Parliament.