Alistair Arkley column

Aug 25 2005 By Alistair Arkley, The Journal

I know the golden rule that, I think as Harold Wilson first put it, a week is a long time in politics. But I'd like to believe that there are occasions when our national leaders really do mean what they say - and stick to it.

Take for instance what Tony Blair told us after the election. What he had learned during the election campaign was that there was a need for his Government to "listen" more.

I believe he was absolutely sincere and only recently I was pleased that in my role as chairman of the northern business forum I was able to help provide an opportunity for Cabinet Office Minister John Hutton and his colleague at the Department of Trade and Industry, Barry Gardiner, to meet the business community in the region to hear our views on cutting red tape.

The ministers were genuinely willing to listen and obviously committed in their plans. Yet I fear that what might seem a relatively straightforward issue to ministers and policy advisers is often not quite the same when the policy has to be put into practice.

I say this with some recent and chastening personal experience. My company, New Century Inns, along with the rest of the drinks industry, has been grappling with the impact of the new licensing laws.

According to the Government, the new rules are simpler and cheaper. Well, with just 48 pubs, we fully expect our costs to run into six figures … or put another way, 10-15% of our total profits last year.

The new system is in the hands of local authorities - in the past, applications went before local licensing magistrates - and it is clear that some authorities are seeking to "stretch" the new legislation beyond breaking point to impose conditions which are sometimes silly and, on occasions, potentially very damaging.

In Harrogate - not known as a centre of vice and depravity - we are being asked to give an undertaking not to use drinks promotions that "make suggestions of sexual success or prowess" and in another instance we are faced with a local authority wanting to impose 17 licence conditions which are actually covered by other legislation.

By the way, if you need a good example of why it might be a good idea if ministers listened to each other, take a look at the recent situation where in a couple of days we saw John Prescott stressing the importance of supporting Northern ports as a key element in his Northern Way initiative, only for Transport Minister Stephen Ladyman to make it clear the priority was to expand southern ports.

I think Tony's got a quite a challenge getting the message to his colleagues.

Alistair Arkley is chairman of the northern business forum and chairman of New Century Inns.