Question to the Department for Levelling Up, Housing & Communities:

To ask the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, whether he plans to introduce measures to simplify licensing applications for hospitality businesses, with particular reference to trading outdoors, in order to support the reopening of business as covid-19 restrictions are eased.

Last summer the Government introduced a series of measures to support hospitality businesses to open safely when lockdown restrictions were eased. The Secretary of State has made a statement in the House and written to local council leaders on planning and hospitality, setting out what these measures are, and confirming that they remain in place to support businesses as they reopen this year.

These measures include the temporary pavement licence provisions introduced in the Business and Planning Act 2020 which create a quicker and cheaper process for businesses to obtain a licence to place outdoor furniture, including tables, chairs and stalls outside their premise. The Government intends to extend the temporary pavement licence provisions for 12 months until September 2022, subject to Parliamentary approval.