Butt Hill stores to loose liquor licence

Date published: 05 January 2010

Bury Council’s licensing team has successfully defended an appeal against its decision to revoke the licence of Butt Hill Stores, Bury New Road, Prestwich to sell alcohol.

At a hearing at Bury Magistrates Court on December 21, 2009 the magistrates dismissed an appeal by Imran Mohammed (27), the Premises Licence Holder and proprietor of Butt Hill Stores, against Bury Council’s licensing committee’s decision to revoke the licence in September 2009.

The magistrates said that they found that Mr Mohammed had largely failed to comply with what they considered to be easily achievable conditions placed on the licence in April 2009. The magistrates heard evidence from Mr Mohammed as to how he had tried to remedy the issues. However, they were of the opinion that his attempts to comply with the conditions were “lax and shoddy” and that he had failed to meet the targets set for him by the licensing authority. They ordered him to pay a contribution of £1,000 towards Bury Council’s legal costs.

Bury Council has been pursuing this issue throughout 2009 after Mr Mohammed was convicted of 27 offences, committed between August 2007 and July 2008 from his store. These offences related to the sale of counterfeit DVDs; the possession of more than 70 bottles of counterfeit vodka; food displayed for sale beyond its sell by date; and a sale of alcohol to a minor. For these offences Mr Mohammed was sentenced to a 12 month community order with a three month curfew order.

As a result of this conviction Peter Jagger, Bury Council’s head of trading standards, requested he appear before the licensing committee on April 15, 2009 where stringent conditions were placed upon his licence.

These conditions included a requirement to display alcohol behind the counter; to display “Challenge 21” signage; to keep a refusals book detailing instances of refusals; to train staff and to provide a written record of such training; and to mark all cans and bottles of alcohol so they could be traced back to the shop.

Greater Manchester Police asked Mr Mohammed to return before the licensing committee later in the year, because they obtained evidence to suggest that he was not complying with the conditions added to his licence. At a hearing on September 25, 2009 the committee revoked his licence.

Michael Bridge, Bury Council’s licensing manager, said: “The police and trading standards are entitled to ask for reviews of licences in cases where crimes are committed at the premises. The conditions imposed on the licence earlier in the year were designed to uphold the licensing objectives, and failure to comply with these conditions was viewed very seriously by the council, police and the courts.”

Mr Mohammed has a right of appeal which he must exercise within 21 days of the decision.