HC Deb 19 July 1910 vol 19 cc1220-2

(1) For the purpose of granting justices' licences, the licensing justices for every licensing district shall within the first fourteen days of February in every year hold a special session (to be called the general annual licensing meeting).

(2) The justices acting in and for the petty sessional division or borough forming the licensing district shall hold a meeting at least twenty-one days before the general annual licensing meeting, and appoint the day, hour, and place at which the general annual licensing meeting is to be held.

(3) The licensing justices may at any general annual licensing meeting adjourn the meeting to such day and to such place within the licensing district as they think fit for meeting the convenience of persons intending to apply for justices' licences, and a day and place for at least one such adjourned meeting shall be so appointed by the justices.

(4) Every such adjourned meeting shall be deemed to be a continuation of the general annual licensing meeting, and shall be held within one month from the date of the original meeting; and the first adjourned meeting shall not be held on any one of the five days next after the date of the original meeting:

Provided that where an applicant for the grant of a justices' licence has through inadvertence or misadventure failed to comply with any preliminary requirements of this Act, the licensing justices may, if they think fit, and upon such terms as they think proper, postpone the consideration of the application to a meeting to be held on a later date, and, if at that meeting they are satisfied that any terms imposed by them have been complied with, may consider the question of the grant of the licence as if the preliminary requirements of this Act had been properly complied with.

A meeting held for the consideration of an application postponed under this provision may be held if necessary after the date on which an adjourned general annual licensing meeting may be held, and as far as that application is concerned the powers of the licensing justices may be exercised at that meeting in the same manner as at an adjourned general annual licensing meeting.

(5) When the justices have appointed the day, hour, and place of the general annual licensing meeting, the clerk shall within five days send copies of a notice of the day, hour, and place so fixed to the proper police officers, and those officers shall cause a copy to be fixed on the door of the church or chapel of any parish in the licensing district, or, where there is no such church or chapel, on some other public and conspicuous place in the parish, and the clerk shall also cause a copy to be served on every licensing justice, and on the holders of justices' on-licences in the district, and any person who has applied for a justices' licence.

The same procedure shall be followed as respects notice of any adjournment of a general annual licensing meeting, but it shall not be necessary to serve a copy of the notice of any such adjournment on holders of justices' licences or on applicants for justices' licences who are not required to attend at the adjourned meetings.

The copies of the notice to be sent by the clerk under the foregoing provision to the proper police officers shall, in the metropolitan police district and the city of London, be sent forthwith to the high constable, and the high constable shall, within five days, cause the copies to be fixed and served as required by that provision.

Mr. SIMON moved in Sub-section (2), after the word "The" ["The justices"], to insert the word "licensing."

Amendment agreed to.

Mr. SIMON moved in Sub-section (2), to leave out the words "acting in and for the petty sessional division or borough forming the licensing district."

Amendment agreed to.

Mr. SIMON moved in Sub-section (5), after the word "the" ["the justices"], to insert the word "licensing."

Amendment agreed to.

Mr. SIMON moved in Sub-section (5), to leave out the words "on-licences" ["Justices' on-licences"], and to insert instead thereof the word "licences."

Amendment agreed to.

Clause, as amended, added to the Bill.