Newcastle City Council is the first local authority in England and Wales to approve proposals for a Late Night Levy (LNL).
At a Cabinet meeting last night, councillors agreed in principle to introduce the LNL from 1 November 2013 for licensed premises operating between midnight and 6am.
A spokesman for the council said: “The decision was made by cabinet. It will happen, but it has to be rubber stamped at the full City Council meeting on 3 July.”
The decision follows a 12 week consultation on the introduction of an LNL.
Councillor Linda Hobson, deputy cabinet member for community safety and regulation for Newcastle City Council, said: “The vibrancy and vitality Newcastle’s night time economy has a worldwide reputation and makes an invaluable contribution to the city’s prosperity. However, it also has less welcome consequences – noise, crime, anti-social behaviour and negative health impacts. The levy… will be the first of its kind in the UK.”
She added that the levy will “seek to strike the right balance by ensuring those businesses which benefit should make a limited contribution to these costs, maintaining the city as one of the safest in the country and attractive to investors and visitors”.
The amount of the LNL will depend on the rateable value of the affected premises, and range from £299 to £4,400 per year, or in daily terms from 82p to £12.16 per day.
Newcastle City Council said it plans to spend the LNL income on taxi marshalling, CCTV improvements, street pastors, street cleaning, enforcement and personal safety initiatives and improved toilet facilities.
