We are aware that some LAs in England and Wales only review their gambling fees every 3 years but we would encourage you do so annually. The maximum fee levels are set by the Department for Digital Culture Media and Sport (DCMS).
For England and Wales the Gambling Act states that LAs shall “...aim to ensure that the income from fees as nearly as possible equates to the costs of providing the service to which the fees relates” (Gambling Act 2005 Section 212(2) (d))”.
The DCMS guidance to LAs on setting premises licence fees therefore states that: “Licensing authorities should therefore review and publish their fees annually to ensure that the income from the premises licence fees in any one accounting period (ie in any full financial year) does not exceed the full costs incurred by the authority in carrying out the relevant functions.”
The DCMS fee guidance, which is available on the LGA’s knowledge hub, also states the annual fee will cover the reasonable costs of compliance and enforcement work, including the cost of dealing with illegal gambling in a licensing authority’s area.
Fee setting must be transparent and a licensing authority should closely track its costs and be able to evidence how it arrived at the fee levels to demonstrate that they have been calculated on a cost recovery basis only.
Although ultimately it is a matter for the courts, we understand that the Supreme Court ruling in Hemming v Westminster does not impact on licensing authorities setting premises fees under the Act, as the Act does not fall within the scope of the EU Services Directive.