Civic Government (Scotland) Act 1982
Civic Government(Scotland) Act 1982
1982 CHAPTER 45
An Act to make provision as regards Scotland for the licensing and regulation of certain activities; for the preservation of public order and safety and the prevention of crime; for prohibiting the taking of and dealing with indecent photographs of children; as to certain powers of constables and others; as to lost and abandoned property and property in the possession of persons taken into police custody; as to the rights and duties of the owners and users of certain land, buildings and other structures; as to the making by local authorities of byelaws; and to enable them to make management rules applying to land or premises under their control; as to certain other functions of local authorities and their officers; as to the time when the Burgh Police (Scotland) Acts 1892 to 1911 and certain local statutory provisions cease to have effect; and for connected purposes.
[28th October 1982]
Be it enacted by the Queen's most Excellent Majesty, by and with the advice and consent of the Lords Spiritual and Temporal, and Commons, in this present Parliament assembled, and by the authority of the same, as follows:—
Part I
Licensing—General Provisions
1 Application of Parts I and II of this Act.
1. This Part of this Act shall have effect with respect to the licensing of the activities for which licences are required under Part II of this Act.
2 Licensing authorities.
(1) For the administration of licensing in relation to the activities in connection with which licences are required under Part II of this Act there shall be a licensing authority for each district and islands area.
(2) The licensing authority shall be the district or islands council within whose area the activity is, or is to be, carried on.
(3) Notwithstanding subsection (2) above, a district or islands council shall not be exempt from any requirement to have a licence or any other obligation under this Part or Part II of this Act and a licensing authority shall have power to entertain and dispose of an application by a district or islands council for a licence or in respect of a licence held by them.
3 Discharge of functions of licensing authorities.
(1) For the purpose of the discharge of their functions under this Part of this Act, every licensing authority shall consider, within 3 months of its having been made to them under paragraph 1 of Schedule 1 to this Act, each application so made and, subject to the following provisions of this section, reach a final decision on it within 6 months.
(2) On summary application by the licensing authority within the 6 month period referred to in subsection (1) above, the sheriff may, if it appears to him that there is good reason to do so, extend that period as he thinks fit.
(3) The applicant shall be entitled to be a party to a summary application under subsection (2) above.
(4) Where the licensing authority have failed to reach a final decision on the application before the expiry of—
(a ) the 6 month period referred to in subsection (1) above, or
(b ) such further period as the sheriff may have specified on application under subsection (2) above,
the licence applied for shall be deemed to have been granted or, as the case may be, renewed unconditionally on the date of such expiry and shall remain in force for one year, but this subsection is without prejudice to the powers of revocation under section 7(6)(a ) of this Act, of variation under paragraph 10 of Schedule 1 to this Act and of suspension under paragraphs 11 and 12 of that Schedule and to the provisions of paragraph 8(5) of that Schedule.
(5) The licensing authority shall make out and deliver the licence to the applicant to whom it has been deemed to have been granted under subsection (4) above.
4 Further provisions as to licensing.
4. Schedule 1 to this Act (which contains further provisions as to licensing and regulation in relation to the activities in connection with which licences are required under Part II of this Act) shall have effect.
5 Rights of entry and inspection.
(1) Without prejudice to any other provision of this Act, an authorised officer of the licensing authority or the fire authority or a constable may, for the purposes specified in subsection (2) below, at any reasonable time—
(a ) enter and inspect any premises, vehicle or vessel used or to be used for an activity in relation to which a licence is in force or has been applied for under this Act;
(b ) require production of and inspect any equipment, plant, apparatus or stock-in-trade which is or is to be kept or used in connection with any such activity;
(c ) require production of and inspect any records or other documents required by or under this Part or Part II of this Act to be kept by the holder of the licence and take copies of or extracts from any such record or document.
(2) The purposes referred to in subsection (1) above are—
(a ) where a licence is in force—
(i) seeing whether the terms of the licence are being complied with and, if they are not, obtaining information in respect of such non-compliance;
(ii) obtaining information relevant to the question whether the terms of the licence should be varied under paragraph 10 of Schedule 1 to this Act or whether the licence should be renewed or, under paragraph 11 or 12 of that Schedule, suspended; or
(b ) where the grant of a licence has been applied for, obtaining information relevant to the question whether the application should be granted.
(3) Any person who—
(a ) being a person for the time being in charge of any premises, vehicle or vessel, fails without reasonable excuse to permit a constable or an authorised officer of a licensing authority or a fire authority who, in pursuance of subsection (1) above, demands to do so to enter or inspect the premises, vehicle or vessel or obstructs the entry thereto of a constable or such an officer, in pursuance of that subsection;
(b ) being a person in respect of whom powers are exercised under subsection (1) above, on being required under that subsection to do so by a constable or an authorised officer of the licensing authority or the fire authority, fails without reasonable excuse to produce any equipment, plant, apparatus or stock-in-trade or to permit a constable or such an officer, in pursuance of that subsection, to inspect any equipment, plant, apparatus or stock-in-trade;
(c ) being a holder of a licence, on being required by a constable or an authorised officer of the licensing authority or the fire authority, in pursuance of subsection (1) above, to produce any records or other document required by or under this Part or Part II of this Act to be kept by the holder of a licence, fails without reasonable excuse to produce them;
shall be guilty of an offence and liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding 200.
(4) An authorised officer of a licensing authority or a constable may require any person who the officer or constable has reasonable ground to believe is carrying on an activity which requires to be licensed to produce his licence within 5 days of being required to do so.
(5) Any person who, having been required under subsection (4) above to produce a licence, fails without reasonable excuse to do so within the period of 5 days specified in that subsection shall be guilty of an offence and liable, on summary conviction, to a fine not exceeding 25.
(6) An authorised officer of a licensing authority or the fire authority shall not be entitled to exercise the powers which he may exercise under subsection (1) or (4) above until he has produced his authorisation—
(a ) in relation to the exercise of powers under subsection (1)(a ) above, to the person for the time being in charge of the premises, vehicle or vessel; and
(b ) in any other case, to the person in respect of whom the powers are to be exercised.
(7) A constable who is not in uniform shall not be entitled to exercise the powers which he may exercise under subsection (1) or (4) above until he has produced his identification—
(a ) in relation to the exercise of powers under subsection (1)(a ) above, to the person for the time being in charge of the premises, vehicle or vessel; and
(b ) in any other case, to the person in respect of whom the powers are to be exercised.
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