Licensees hit a brick wall on outdoor smoking shelters

It seems the widely predicted obstruction by local authorities is already presenting major issues for licensees attempting to plan outside areas before the ban hits England on July 1, 2007.

Andy Longman, licensee of the Suburban Style Bar in Horsforth, Leeds, had his planning application for an outdoor smoking area rejected on the grounds of potential noise pollution.

He said: "We're stuck between a rock and a hard place. We have no room to expand as our site fronts onto a main road. We had our application thrown out, without consultation, in just five weeks. It's another way of putting a nail in the coffin of the licensed trade."

Tim Willis, licensee at the White Horse Inn in Washford, West Somerset, built a portable shelter in the beer garden across the road from his pub, using metal skids usually reserved for horses.

Mr Willis said he was told beforehand that he wouldn¹t need planning permission because the shelter was portable and could be moved away from the nearby river with relative ease.

However, after he installed it, West Somerset Council told him he did need planning permission and said he did not have a convincing business case to erect it.

Tim said: "We're a landlocked pub with no garden and no opportunity to expand. The shelter is portable with no closed sides to it, like a roof on stilts. The planning committee has chucked it out and is not supporting me."

A spokesman for Leeds City Council said: "We have not been advised to give special consideration to the creation of outdoor provision for smokers." West Somerset Council was unavailable for comment.