COUNCIL PROPOSES REMOVAL OF SAUNAS AND MASSAGE PREMISES FROM PUBLIC ENTERTAINMENT LICENCE LIST
A proposal to remove saunas and massage premises from the list of premises that require a Public Entertainment Licence will be considered by councillors at the Regulatory Committee on Monday, 3 February 2014.
The Committee agreed that the Council should carry out a public consultation following concerns that the practice of licensing these premises was not achieving its aim of harm reduction and was no longer sustainable.
It is clear from the responses received that the majority of consultation respondents were interested mainly in harm reduction issues and the report acknowledges that this objective is best served through other means.
Councillor Gavin Barrie, Convener of the Regulatory Committee, said: “Recent checks on licensed premises have uncovered evidence that activity beyond the terms of the licence is taking place in some premises. The proposal to be considered at next week’s committee states that the amount of evidence we have now received means it is no longer appropriate to consider saunas and massage premises for a public entertainment licence.
“If the Committee decides not to license these premises in future, the Council will still take the safety and wellbeing of those working in saunas and massage premises extremely seriously and our Health, Social Care and Housing Committee will scrutinise the harm reduction work underway across the various agencies working in partnership.”
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