My Lords, during the Covid pandemic, the catering industry suffered huge disruption, and, with the support of local councils, some innovative solutions were found to create outdoor eating, drinking and dining spaces, which helped to provide some opportunity to relieve the pressure on businesses, but also to give some much-needed social space which met the constraints of Covid regulations.
In many communities, this brought a new dimension to high streets, with outdoor seating and catering creating more of a continental feel, which was, for the most part, welcomed by communities. The regulations relating to pavement trading were relaxed, and there was the opportunity to test the impact of these less formal spaces on supporting the regeneration of our high streets. So we welcome the overall aim, which is to encourage a more relaxed approach to pavement trading.
The Nationwide Caterers’ Association website states:
“The past two years have been incredibly difficult for the hospitality industry, and the hope is that refurbished outdoor spaces will help to attract customers with new offerings and a ‘continental culture that will hopefully bring Britain’s high streets to life’”.
However, as ever, the implementation of these street trading spaces during Covid highlighted some of the issues that arise, and the amendments in this group address many of them with sensible additions to the Bill that do not seek to reimpose an overbureaucratic regime.
Our Amendment 448 refers to the critical issue of accessibility. One of the main causes of complaint relating to pavement trading during the Covid crisis
was that there was occasionally an inconsiderate approach to the needs of all highway users. Those with disabilities, for example, found that not enough space was left for wheelchairs or mobility scooters to get through and, for those with sight impairment, the unexpected obstacles on the highway presented major challenges. Although we support the overall drive for a more relaxed regime, it is essential that it does not create a street scene which excludes, or impairs access for, some of our community. Amendment 448 would ensure that accessibility is considered, by assessing the overall street scene and then ensuring that any pavement trading offer was compliant with keeping access routes clear.
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Amendment 450 in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Holmes, allows the use of highway shared space between vehicles and pedestrians. We can envisage complexities that might arise in relation to this, but knowing how thoughtful the noble Lord is, we look forward to hearing how this might work in practice. His Amendments 451 and 452 relate to the responsibilities of businesses that trade on the highway to make a contribution to maintenance and cleansing charges. Of course, it might be simpler if there was just more discretion for local authorities to ensure that the licence fee took account of these aspects on application for the licence, but, again, I am sure that the noble Lord will have given careful thought to his proposal, and we look forward to hearing his views.
Amendment 454 from the noble Lords, Lord Holmes and Moylan, and Amendment 456, in the names of the noble Lords, Lord Holmes, Lord Moylan and Lord Blencathra, and the noble Baroness, Lady Randerson, make a sensible change to increase the consultation period for pavement licences to 28 days, in line with the Highways Act. We understand that during the Covid crisis, the provisions in the Business and Planning Act 2020 were dealing with an emergency situation, so seven days may have been appropriate, but it is an unusually short period for consultation, particularly where communities are involved, and we agree that 28 days would provide a better opportunity for all those who have a view to comment and have their views taken into account.
Amendment 455 in the names of the noble Lords, Lord Holmes and Lord Blencathra, and to which I have added my name, gives local authorities an important obligation to consider the needs of all users of the highway in granting licences. This reflects my earlier amendment on considering those with disabilities, but would also require consideration of the general flow of pedestrians in the high street, the interaction between pedestrians, traffic and cyclists, and the potential obstruction of access to other businesses, which may be undesirable.
My Amendment 462 would put in place a penalty regime for those pavement licence holders who do not comply with the local authority’s requirement to remove street furniture when the area is not in use, and Amendment 463 gives the power to local authorities to make it an offence not to remove furniture where the local authority has requested it be removed when the area is not in use for drinking or dining. Of course,
we anticipate that this would be a last resort power, for use only where licence holders persistently refused to comply with local authority guidelines.
Amendment 457 in the names of the noble Lords, Lord Holmes, Lord Moylan and Lord Blencathra, and the noble Baroness, Lady Randerson, changes the default position in the Business and Planning Act 2020 for expired applications from granting those applications to rejecting them. I see no justification for granting applications that have expired, whatever the reason.
Two of the key issues that arose during the relaxation of the pavement licensing rules due to the Covid crisis were the presence of furniture on the high street when the premises were closed, which sometimes gave rise to antisocial behaviour—for example, this furniture being moved into places where it would cause an obstruction—and the issue of smoking or vaping in those outdoor areas, which rendered them inaccessible for those for whom smoke causes medical issues, and unpleasant for other users. There was a general feeling that to make designated outside eating and drinking areas accessible for all users, they should, for the purposes of smoking and vaping, be treated in the same way as indoor areas. Amendment 458, in the names of the noble Lords, Lord Holmes and Lord Blencathra, and the noble Baroness, Lady Randerson, to which I have added my name, would give local authorities the ability to put in place specific conditions in the licence to address this. This enables local authorities to take account of the needs of their own areas, and means that, where appropriate, they can require that furniture is removed when not in use and that licensees have a responsibility to prevent smoking affecting other users in the vicinity of the premises.
Amendment 459 is a more proscriptive approach to smoking in outside seating areas, which we completely understand, given the well-documented health issues. We look forward to hearing from the noble Lords, Lord Young, Lord Faulkner and Lord Hunt, and the noble Baroness, Lady Northover, how the practicalities of that might work.
Amendment 460 in the name of the noble Lord, Lord Holmes, refers to issues of accessibility, which I spoke about previously. It is vital that areas are clearly designated and marked in a way that ensures they can be navigated by all members of the community.
Our Amendment 464 comes back to the issue of the evidence base for the provisions in the levelling-up Bill, which my noble friend Lady Hayman mentioned earlier. It probes whether any assessment has been carried out of the impact on high street footfall. The new provisions of the Bill are being included because it is believed that they will help both businesses and high streets to recover from what has undoubtedly been a very difficult period for them. We are interested to know whether there is an evidence base to support this.
Amendment 465 refers to an impact assessment to test a number of measures in the Bill and those that are the subject of amendments in this group, such as the change to consultation periods, the introduction of mandatory tactile markers or barriers around licensed areas and the removal of the automatic approval of licences. In general, we see real benefits in giving local authorities the ability to manage outside spaces on
their high streets in a way that works best for their communities and without unnecessary bureaucracy which makes the application and implementation onerous for either the local authority or the businesses that are applicants. However, it is important that, in doing so, we ensure that we do not create a street scene that is in any way less accessible to those with disabilities, nor create health hazards for other users by turning outside areas into smoking zones that deter them. I beg to move.