Monday, November 20, 2006

A pub with three machines would see initial fees rocket from £32 to £200
when the Gambling Act goes live next September. Councils are asking for even
steeper fees. The proposed changes are included in the consultation on the
gambling fees from the Department for Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS). It
suggests fee levels for the new Licensed Premises Notification permits to
replace Licensed Premises Gaming Machine permits, which cost £32 with a £32
annual renewal fee. For pubs with one or two machines, the new permit would
cost £50. Pubs with more than two machines would have to fork out £150, plus
an extra £50 "annual maintenance" cost, which must be paid upfront. Councils
have already called for permits to operate more than two machines to
increase to a £439 - with annual maintenance costs of an astonishing £1,793.
Business in Sport and Leisure chief executive Brigid Simmonds said the
proposed price hikes would be felt most at the type of pubs likely to be
affected by next year's smoking ban. "We want people to go back to DCMS and
say, 'these fees are far too high, we want to have something that's far more
realistic for our pubs," she said.