Member

Amendments 78, 86, 88 and 89, tabled by the noble Lord, Lord Lansley, would allow local authority trading standards to retain the proceeds from the new £2,500 fixed penalty notice for licensing offences for the purpose of enforcement, rather than having that amount of money returned to the Consolidated Fund once costs have been deducted. To support the enforcement of retail licensing, as I know he knows, but it is worth putting down for the record, local authorities will be able to retain proceeds of the £2,500 fixed penalty notice, which allow them to cover costs of investigating and issuing the fixed penalty. Yes, it is the case that any remaining money will be returned to the Consolidated Fund. We believe that this is balanced and fair.