Inappropriately Enough…Slough table dancing applicant fails to get council ban overturned in a Judicial Review

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See article from sloughobserver.co.uk

Applicants for a table dancing licence in Slough have failed to get a council ban overturned after a judicial review. South Bucks District Council’s refusal of a licence to use Pandora’s, in Uxbridge Road, as a sex entertainment venue was backed by Mr Justice Sales. The High Court judge rejected KVP Ent Ltd’s challenge, dismissing claims the council’s decision in November 2011, was unlawful and inconsistent with the decision the same month, to grant planning permission for a change of use of the ground floor from a restaurant to a table dancing nightclub. The judge found the council was entitled to reach the decision it did, rejecting claims it gave inadequate reasons for the refusal. The council had claimed it would be inappropriate to grant the licence due to the character of the locality. A spokeswoman from South Bucks District Council said: The council is very pleased to have successfully defended the challenge by way of Judicial Review of its decision to refuse the application for a Sex Establishment Licence for lap dancing at Pandora’s in George Green and to have been awarded a full costs order against the claimant.

Frankly I’m Shocked…Gender extremist MP ‘outraged’ that other politicians disagree with her views

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See article from yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk

A Leeds MP has demanded an apology from a councillor who does not agree with her extremist views. Rachel Reeves has branded Leeds City Council councillor Joe Marjoram’s comments about lap dancing proposals on the social networking site as outrageous . Councillor Marjoram had been responding to Leeds City Council’s recommendation to ban several of the city’s lap dancing clubs. The Conservative councillor tweeted that he would not object if someone planned to open up a lap dancing club in his ward but added it would not make money outside the city centre . He then made light in another tweet: naked dancing girls for neighbours sounds great. Marjoram told the YEP that he stood by his comments and that they were a joke: It was intended as a joke and anyone who read that needs to go away and get a sense of humour. There’s nothing wrong with the lap dancing industry. It’s not linked to the sex trade or forced labour. If people object to it as an industry then don’t take it out on me. Making a complaint about a tweet will get nothing done and it shows how pedantic they are. If I have done something illegal, unlawful or offensive they can report me to the police if not they can get lost. Reeves retorted: Frankly I’m pretty shocked that a Leeds councillor has made these outrageous comments. I call on Councillor Marjoram to withdraw his comments and apologise for them.

Moralists Win…Nutters convince Leeds Council to try and arbitrarily ban 3 lap dancing clubs

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See article from yorkshireeveningpost.co.uk

A new draft policy recommends that Leeds City Council imposes a limit of four lap dancing clubs,  three fewer than are currently operating. It also suggests banning strip joints from sensitive locations , for example near schools and religious buildings. The new proposals were welcomed by Leeds West MP Rachel Reeves, who led last year’s campaign. She spouted: I want Leeds to be seen as a welcoming, family-friendly city and I do not feel that the proliferation of lap dancing clubs in prominent locations sends out a positive image of our city to visitors. I hope that the licensing committee uses the cap on the number of venues as a way of doing this. Bishop of Ripon and Leeds, the Rt Revd John Packer, is backing the new policy. One would think that churches should lay off preaching about sexual morality until they have got their own houses in order, but he spouted anyway: This seems an appropriate response to the concerns expressed by many that some parts of Leeds city centre could be effectively barred to children and families because of the sheer number of SEVs. It is important that the city of Leeds is seen as a place of welcome and encouragement to all. The policy was drawn up by a council working group following a survey of more than 1,800 members of the council’s Citizens Panel. Asked how many lap dancing clubs was appropriate for the city centre, 59% said four or fewer, of which nearly half said there should be none. The licensing committee is now likely to put the draft policy out for public consultation.

No Recorded Troubles at Sex Shops and Lap Dancing Clubs…But Nottingham moralists target them anyway

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Thanks to David See article from thisisnottingham.co.uk See consultation information from nottinghamcity.gov.uk See online survey (anyone can contribute, there’s nothing onerous) from gossweb.nottinghamcity.gov.uk

Sex shops and lap-dancing clubs should be banned in Nottingham, claims the county’s Deputy Police and Crime Commissioner, Chris Cutland. Cutland moralises that such businesses are old fashioned and demeaning to women: I would like to see a ban. There is a correlation particularly between how women feel when there are more sex shops and lap-dancing clubs — it makes areas no-go areas for women. Cutland cited debunked research by feminist campaigners in the London Borough of Camden which claimed to show that there was a 50% increase in sexual assaults after a rapid expansion of lap-dancing clubs. Of course there is no evidence to support this ridiculous claim and she admitted: Fortunately there have been no recorded incidents of violence or sexual assault in Notts which can be directly linked to these venues but is that because their presence in the city is very limited at present? Police have not recorded any offences against women at any of the three licensed sex venues in the city. These are the sex shops Delta Love in Radford Road and Private Shop, Upper Parliament Street, along with lap dancing club Flirtz, in Friar Lane. The city council is asking people for views on its repressive policy for the venues, saying its preferred option would be for no lap-dancing clubs or sex shops. Barry Maltby, who works at Private Shop, said: I don’t understand why they want it banned, we’re not harming anybody. I can’t understand what we’ve done wrong. What’s next, bookies, nightclubs and pubs? The council has got no idea what we do here. I think they live in another world. There’s lots of nice customers come in here, the days of rain macs have gone, it’s couples that come in. The council’s consultation survey is available on its website and closes next Friday, February 22. The Council plans to finalise its policy by May 2013.

Fears that Birmingham May Turn into the Cliche Capital of Britain…Lap dancing limits discussed by the local council

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See article from birminghammail.co.uk

Birmingham Council moralists want to limit the number of lap dancing clubs in Birmingham to 12, three more than the current nine. Labour Councillor Majid Mahmood spewed tired clich ้ ridden and unsubstantiated claptrap: It’s about time we limited the number of sexual entertainment venues in this city. I would hate to see Birmingham turning into another Soho. However Labour Councillor Habib Rehman warned that decisions based on moralising may be illegal: We need to ensure what we propose does not flout competition laws. The restriction idea will now form part of a ten-week consultation on the council’s sexual entertainment venue policy. The consultation will also address concerns about the promotional methods used by adults-only venues after councillors last year called for a ban on the use of pornographic images on their websites. The consultation, due to start next month, will ask members of the public to express their views through the council’s website. A report on the consultation will be put before the committee in April.

Just Like the Church of England Then!…Church nutter spouts that: ‘strip clubs undermine women in society by presenting them, in an unequal way’

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See article from sheffieldtelegraph.co.uk

Sheffield Cathedral has joined a protest against a proposed lap dancing venue in the city centre. An objection has been lodged in response to an application to convert The Steelhouse bar and club at the corner of Holly Street and West Street, into premises called Wildcats. Sheffield Council was informed by representatives of Leeds-based Harjen Ltd that it would not be a private members’ club or a traditional nightclub with dance floors and loud music, but a bar with a stage for dancing girls doing a striptease show. There would also be private booths form individual customers. Access would be on a discriminatory basis restricted to people aged over 21. The Cathedral’s protests comes from The Rev Canon Dr Joanne Grenfell, who is Dean of Women’s Ministry. She spouts: Strip clubs undermine women in society by presenting them, in an unequal way, as objects for sexual gratification, and they do not promote healthy committed relationships for men or women and indeed promote casual encounters. Presumably her god has magically granted her expertise in local planning and economics. She claims, without offering a scrap of evidence or justification: Already there are similar venues in Sheffield and it is impossible to se why more should be needed. Such a place might deter investment in other entertainment venues in West Street, which would be detrimental to both the economy and to the community’s overall enjoyment of that area. The local newspaper printed a few more examples of unsubstantiated nonsense from local residents, while the applicants point out that noise levels would be lower than those generated by a typical nightclub.

Contradictory Bollox…Blackpool Council refuse a lap dancing licence citing insufficient demand, and then contradict themselves by adding that if they did allow it, it would open the ‘floodgates’ to more clubs

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See article from blackpoolgazette.co.uk

A businessman has been refused permission to transform a former restaurant into a lap-dancing club. John Sayers wanted to open The Doll House in the former Septembers restaurant. But his plans have been smothered at the first hurdle by Blackpool Council’s nutter protection committee who refused to grant him a licence. There are already four lapdancing bars in Blackpool, the arbitrary maximum that council moralists allow. Council solicitor Sharon Davies said the committee had heard nothing that would persuade them there is a need to divert from that policy . Mark Marshall, the council’s licensing manager, said: There are national studies to demonstrate there’s a downturn right across the country in relation to business in lapdancing clubs. I have spoken to all the existing operators (in Blackpool) who all report a huge reduction locally. To review a policy in terms of numbers there would have to be a big demand in that area which demonstrates the need for more supply, and that certainly is not the case at the moment. And licensing Sgt Caroline Hannon added: I don’t believe at this time the policy needs to be reviewed and if it was it would open the floodgates for other applications coming through. Sayers now has the right to ask for a judicial review at court.

Nutter Claims are Poles Apart from Reality…Hubbard report finds that opposition to lap dancing is based on morality or nimbyism and that there is no evidence that such clubs cause crime or nuisance any more than other night time venues

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See article from kent.ac.uk

A year-long research project into people’s attitudes to lap-dance and striptease clubs in towns and cities in England and Wales has found that most people are only concerned by them if they are situated too near their own homes or local schools. Lead researcher Professor Phil Hubbard, of the University’s School of Social Policy, Sociology and Social Research, found that although many residents consider lap-dance clubs lower the tone of neighbourhoods, most do not consider clubs located in town centres to be a source of nuisance. The research – funded by a ฃ 118,000 grant from the Economic and Social Research Council and jointly carried out by Dr Rachela Colosi of the University of Lincoln – is the first of its kind to study the regulation of the 241 lap-dance and striptease clubs in England and Wales and their impact on people’s feelings of safety at night. It was prompted by the introduction of new powers to regulate Sexual Entertainment Venues under the Policing and Crime Act 2009. Professor Hubbard said: Opposition to lap dancing venues appears mainly based on perceptions that clubs normalize sexism and promote anti-social behaviour rather than any direct experience of crime. Our study did not uncover any evidence that these clubs cause more nuisance or crime than other night-time venues. The majority of our respondents appeared unconcerned about clubs so long as they were not located near schools or places where they might be particularly visible to young people. Professor Hubbard said that most local authorities have now adopted the new powers for licensing lap dancing clubs and have sought to develop guidelines indicating where clubs may or may not be located. 55% of all respondents in the research felt lap dancing clubs are appropriate in town and city centres. However, the majority of people felt lap-dancing clubs are inappropriate near to schools (83%) or religious buildings (65%). Very few (3%) felt clubs are suitable in residential areas, even though those living closer to them were no more likely than those living further away to report any nuisance being generated by lap-dancing clubs. Around one in ten respondents felt that there is no suitable location for lap-dancing clubs whatsoever; women constituted the majority of these respondents, though it was also evident that those over forty were less tolerant of lap-dancing clubs than younger people. However, not all clubs were perceived to have similar impacts on their locality. Some clubs were judged to be better managed and less likely to be lowering the tone, primarily on the basis of their external appearance. Signage or club names that implied sexual connotations were more likely to attract comments and anxiety, while blacked out windows appeared to arouse suspicion and were thought to lend some clubs a sleazy appearance . Dr Colosi said: Those viewed as ‘sexualising the street are most likely to cause offence, and create fear among those already fearful of the city at night.’

The Hubbard Report…Preliminary view reveals that objections to lap dancing clubs are based on morality rather than any actual nuisance

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See article from strippingtheillusion.blogspot.com

Well, many readers may have heard of research being carried out by Professor Phil Hubbard on Sexual Entertainment venues. The initial results are in, and although the full results are not due until March 2013, I have been given permission to produce a synopsis of the report. I will say at the outset of this post that the majority of the report is not surprising and does no harm to the industry; there is one sticking point which I will discuss in more detail and explain why I feel that it is not likely to affect the industry. There are 241 licensed premises regularly offering lap dancing or striptease in England and Wales. Nearly half (43%) of those applying for a Sexual Entertainment Venue (SEV) license have received no formal objections at all. This doesn’t really come as much of a surprise: most people are not bothered about the venues and there tends to be only a small handful of complainants who may write in. Given that Portsmouth managed to obtain a massive response following a very vocal campaign by pressure groups to get the clubs shut down, with 113 against and over 3000 for the venues, the fact that some clubs receive no objections at all should not surprise anyone. A survey of residents in towns and cities with lap dance clubs suggests that around one in five were not even aware there was an SEV operating in their town or city! Fewer than one in ten identified an SEV as a particular source of local nuisance, and in some locations this was considerably lower. Once again not a surprise, as we have seen previously from my report on crime that the belief that venues are an issue for police is a fallacy. …Read the full article

Angels Re-winged…Leicester Council rethinks its groundless ban on lap dancing club

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See article from thisisleicestershire.co.uk

A strip club that was denied permission last year has now been allowed to open. Leicester City Council have granted a sexual entertainment venue licence for Angels Gentlemen’s Club in New Park Road. Last year, a similar application from the company, KN Leisure, to open the club between 8pm and 4am was rejected. The new application, which is for opening hours between midnight and 5am, was granted permission by city councillors sitting on a licensing enforcement sub-committee. A strange absence of explanation in the newspaper ‘reporting’ considering the judical review alluded to in an article from strip-magazine.com : In what will probably turn out to be a very important decision Angels in Leicester has been granted an SEV after taking the council to judicial revue. This is the first of what I expect to be a large number of legal challenges pointing out the incompatibility of the new act with a number of EU rules designed to ensure an open market.