Westminster Licensees' Association launches manifesto
London desperately needs later running tubes if late night disorder in the city is to be tackled.
This is according to the Westminster Licensees' Association (WLA), which has just put forward its manifesto for the licensed trade in the run up to the London elections.
It has accused the present transport system of "actively deterring visitors" and is a "major contributor to late night disorder".
The association has insisted that later running of the tube network must be considered as a matter of urgency and at the very least, tube lines within zone 1 should run until 3am over the weekends.
Alex Salussolia (pictured), chairman of the WLA, said: "We have seen a lot of regulation and restrictions on our businesses but precious little to provide the supportive environment the sector needs to thrive.
"These elections are the time to redress the balance and this manifesto sets out our plan for action".
The proposals put forward by the WLA include:
- Licensing and planning policy clearly play an important role in providing the supportive framework our businesses need to thrive. Both of these issues are a matter of local, rather than London-wide policy.
- There must be joined-up thinking to ensure consistency of approach and protect the best interests of London as a whole. We urge the Mayor to take a lead in these areas.
- Operators want a clean and safe environment in which to operate. We want greater enforcement of existing legislation against illegal or irresponsible operators.
- We want politicians to work with licensed retail businesses not against them. The debate must be open, it must be based on fact and solutions must be evidence based.
