MORE than 20 per cent of Camden’s 1,700 pubs and clubs have missed the deadline to vary their opening hours – but licensing chiefs have urged landlords not to panic.
Bar chiefs who missed Saturday’s deadline have to start from scratch and apply for a new licence.
The Town Hall believes all of the fresh applications can be dealt with by November when fixed opening hours will be scrapped.
A hectic schedule of licensing meetings is now been mapped out to ensure all of the demands for new hours can be dealt with.
Licensers were deluged with last-minute applications on Saturday and staff had to work round the clock to deal with the rush.
Robert Scourfield, Assistant Director of Environment, said: “The Licensing Team have done an sterling job, getting to grips with new and complex legislation in an extremely short timescale.
“The fact that the vast majority of the borough’s licensees have got their applications in on time is testament to their hard work.”
Liberal Democrats in Camden, however, remain worried that the heavy workload will prove too much and have already picked up on teething problems such as incorrect information the council’s database.
Ed Fordham, the party’s parliamentary spokesman in Hampstead and Highgate, said: “I am calling the Executive Member responsible, Councillor John Thane, to intervene and act and to work with the council leader and council Chief executive to give this service the resources it actually needs.”