§ 23. Sir K. Thompsonasked the Secretary of State for the Home Department how many betting offices are now licensed to operate in the City of Liverpool; and how many applications are pending.
§ Mr. WoodhouseThe numbers are 475 and 14 respectively.
§ Sir K. ThompsonIs my hon. Friend aware that there is some concern in Liverpool about the continuing growth of the number of betting shops in the city, and does he know that many magistrates are not satisfied that the powers they have to refuse an application are enough to see that the application does not succeed as it goes through further stages of appeal and application higher up?
§ Mr. WoodhouseI have no evidence of the disquiet among magistrates to which my hon. Friend refers. If he will communicate their anxieties to me, or if they will communicate them to the Home Office, we shall certainly consider them.
§ Mr. MellishIs the hon. Gentleman aware that in London also there are far too many betting shops and that this complaint could be applied to all our major cities? Is it not time that the local authorities had far more say than they have now? Cannot they be brought into the picture more and their objections be taken into account? We have 618 more betting shops than grocer's shops in my constituency.
§ Mr. WoodhouseThese are matters for the licensing committees.