§ Mr. Leslie Huckfieldasked the Secretary of State for the Environment what were the number of applications for operators' licences to the licensing authorities in each of the years 1970 to 1973; how many were granted; and what were the main categories of reasons for refusal.
§ Mr. SpeedThe numbers are as follows (Licensing years 1st October to 30th September):
1970–71 1971–72 1972–73 Applications received (including renewals) 30,545 23,569 36,568 Applications granted 26,830 20,216 31,903 Applications refused 600 534 569 The main reasons for refusal were unsatisfactory maintenance facilities and failure to appear when summoned to public inquiry.