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Section 9B of the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 ('the Act'), as inserted by the Air Weapons and Licensing (Scotland) Act 2015, requires each Licensing Board in Scotland to publish an annual financial report. The legislation stipulates that this report must be produced within three months of the end of the relevant financial year and must contain:
- a statement of the relevant income received by the Licensing Board in that year
- a statement of the relevant expenditure incurred in that year
- an explanation of how those amounts were calculated
The duty to publish such a report was introduced to promote greater openness and transparency in the funding of liquor licensing. The Scottish Government has made clear in its guidance that the intention of the fee regime is to ensure that Licensing Boards, as far as possible, recover the costs associated with the discharge of their statutory functions, rather than generating either profit or deficit for the local authority. By publishing this annual financial report, the Board demonstrates that fee income is being used to support the efficient and effective delivery of licensing responsibilities.
For the purposes of this report, 'relevant income' refers to all fee income received under the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 during the financial year. This includes applications for new premises licences, annual premises licence fees, transfers and variations, personal licences, and occasional and extended hours applications. 'Relevant expenditure' is defined broadly and includes both direct and indirect costs incurred in connection with the Licensing Board’s liquor licensing functions. These costs cover staffing, administrative support, Licensing Standards Officer activity, legal advice and an appropriate share of wider council overheads such as ICT and support services.
The figures set out in this statement have been compiled using data from the council’s licensing database and financial management systems. Staffing and support costs have been apportioned to licensing on the basis of time commitment and the council’s established corporate cost allocation model. This ensures consistency and comparability with financial reports produced by other Licensing Boards across Scotland.
This report therefore provides a full account of the income and expenditure associated with the Licensing Board’s functions for the financial year 1 April 2024 to 31 March 2025. The detailed financial statement is presented below.
Financial Statement
Total income - £161,705.
Premises licences (including annual fees) - £143,275.
Personal licences - £9,800
Occasional/extended hours - £8,630.
Total expenditure - £173,937.78.
Staffing costs - £153,430.30.
Other costs - £20,507.48
Net total - £12,232.78 (deficit)
Explanatory notes
The income referred to above represents fees received under the Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 between 1 April 2024 and 31 March 2025. This includes fees for new premises licences, annual premises licence fees, variations, transfers, personal licences and occasional/extended hours applications.
The staffing costs refers to salary, superannuation, national insurance and pension costs associated with the Clerk, Licensing Standards Officers and other council staff responsible for administrative support under paragraph 8 of Schedule 1 of the Act. Proportions have been agreed to reflect the share of staff resources devoted to the discharge of Licensing Board duties.
Other costs include expenditure which can be specifically attributed to liquor licensing activity. This covers training for Licensing Standards Officers and Licensing Board members, postage and stationary costs, travel and subsistence for officers attending inspections or other Board related work and also any legal or consultancy costs incurred in connection with Board business.
The Licensing (Scotland) Act 2005 requires that fee income and expenditure are considered together to assess whether cost recovery is being achieved. The accounting process ensures that the licensing system operates on a cost recovery basis rather than generating profit or loss for the council.