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Agenda item

Economic Stock take and the Night Time Economy

Meeting of Skills, Economy and Growth Scrutiny Commission, Wednesday 9 March 2022 7.00 pm (Item 5.)

Minutes:

5.1 The Chair welcomed to the meeting Aled Richards, Strategic Director of Sustainability & Public Realm; Stephen Haynes, Strategic Director Inclusive Economy, Corporate Policy & New Homes; Suzanne Johnson, Head of Area Regeneration and Michael Toyer, Economic Development Manager. Also in attendance for this item was the Cllr Susan Fajana-Thomas, Cabinet Member for Community Safety and Daniel O’Sullivan Service Area Manager, Parking, Markets and Street Trading from London Borough of Hackney.

5.2 The Chair explained the first half of this item would be about the economic stocktake in Hackney. The second half would focus on the night-time economy.

5.3 The Chair commenced the item by saying following the unprecedented shock to the economy from the pandemic the Commission wanted an update on the health of the economy pre pandemic and post pandemic. To assess the work by the Council throughout the pandemic to support the economy and the council’s analysis about the impact of those efforts.

5.3.1 The Strategic Director Inclusive Economy, Corporate Policy & New Homes from LBH explained the questions asked by the Commission were applicable to both service areas and would be covered in the one presentation.

5.4 The Head of Area Regeneration commenced the presentation and made the following main points:

5.4.1 The business statistics in Hackney inform us there are a total of 24,295 business units (Source: ONS Inter-Departmental Business Register 2021) and 98% of businesses in Hackney are small and micro businesses.

• Micro employee numbers are between 0 - 9 and the business count in the borough is 21,970

• Small employee numbers are between 10 - 49 and the business count in the borough is 2,005

• Medium employee numbers are between 50 - 249 and the business count in the borough is 285

• Large employee numbers are between 250+ and the business count in the borough is 30.

For high street businesses based on the business rates data it was estimated that in Hackney there were up to 3,000 retail, leisure, and hospitality units in the borough (based on Hackney Council Business Rates records for 2020).

5.4.2 The biggest sectors in the borough are:

• Professional, scientific and technical

• Information and communication

• Business administration and support services

• Retail

• Arts, entertainment, recreation and other services

• Property

• Construction

• Accommodation and food services.

5.4.3 The officer explained as set out in the presentation there are various sources of business and economic data, they access to assess the economy. More recently the Council has been collating data on Hackney businesses from the business grants programme.

5.4.4 As a result of the business grants program, they built a new IT system for businesses to engage with to obtain a grant. This has given the council precise information about name, location, size of the business (number of employees), type of business (if registered as a company, sole trader or freelance or partnership model) and business sector.

5.4.5 The officer explained the business set code is the category assigned by government for the business type and sector and their business rate status. Although some of the information held is like the data provided by the Office for National Statistics (ONS), the data collated by the Council is specific to Hackney businesses.

5.4.6 Now the council has data held in one place and does not need to draw the information from various sources as previously. This will provide a valuable and rich data source for future use. But currently this data is being used to pay out business grants.

5.4.7 The ONS provide detailed data about business sectors and employment per sector.

5.4.8 The GLA provides a London data set is about local economies, high streets and includes some information about the night-time economy.

5.4.9 The ONS and GLA data is used to identify wider trends and for strategy development.

5.4.10 The council has carried out 3 business survey’s during the pandemic which focused of the immediate priorities of businesses at different points in the pandemic. The support needed by businesses and the type of business support that would benefit businesses in the future post pandemic from the council. The latest survey was recently completed, and the council is currently analysing the results.

5.4.11 The council has an employment land study, this was prepared for the local plan. This data set is quite dated now. This data was used to help guide landlord requirements for commercial space, existing retail space and used to predict the future retail and commercial space needed in the borough.

5.4.12 The council also has different type of subscriber lists; business network (4000 businesses signed up), night portal (100 businesses) and zero emissions network (700 businesses).

5.4.13 In relation to how the data collated is used. The officer explained regulatory services data is used for fees and inspections part of the service and income functions. There are limitations with this data because it is used to make applications. But this data would not be updated if a regulatory application is not required again.

5.4.14 The business grants data is currently being used for the emergency grants program.

5.4.15 The Council has provided economic support to businesses through the pandemic via the distribution of Government Covid-19 business grants. As at January 2022, the Council had distributed around £126m of grants to local businesses via the Discretionary Grant fund (£3.4m paid), Retail Hospitality and Leisure Grant (£38m), Small Business Grant (£30m), Local Restrictions Support Grants (£18m), Christmas Support Payment (£163k), Closed Business Lockdown Payment (£10.3m), Restart Grant (£17.5m), and the Additional Restrictions Grant (£8.8m to approximately 2060 business).

5.4.16 The grants paid to those businesses who pay business rates have primarily focused on businesses in the hospitality, leisure, retail and accommodation sectors. The discretionary grant funds have also focused on the same business sectors (but included those businesses in these sectors who don’t pay business rates) as well as businesses which supply the retail, accommodation, hospitality and leisure sectors, market traders, nurseries, and childminders. In addition, the discretionary grant funds has also considered businesses in any sector provided they could adequately demonstrate that the pandemic had a negative financial impact on their business and they were experiencing financial hardship as a result.

5.4.17 The Government announced two new business grants to support businesses most impacted by the rise of the Omicron variant. The Omicron Hospitality and Leisure Grant is a one-off grant for businesses in the hospitality, leisure and accommodation sectors who pay business rates. The Government has also provided a top up to the discretionary Additional Restrictions Grant fund to allow Local Authorities to support other businesses in their area who they consider to be impacted by the Omicron variant. The two grant funds opened for applications in January 2022 and will be paid by 31st March 2022.

5.4.18 The officer highlighted there had been other support such as the furlough scheme, business loans, self-employment income support stream.

5.4.19 The Council has also taken a more bespoke approach and used its discretion to allocate funding from the Government Covid-19 Additional Restrictions Grant (ARG) to provide longer term support to local micro and small businesses by establishing 5 x business support programmes. The programmes listed on slide 9 were either still operational or had recently closed. Therefore, they have either paid out or will be delivered up until December 2022.

5.4.20 as a commercial landlord the Council has provided other support during the pandemic. The Council has worked with businesses on a one-to-one basis to provide a rent deferral or rent reduction and in some cases right off the payments. For business tenants the council has provided support to business tenants via the business forums, the Hackney business network, social media channels etc.

5.4.21 The Council has carried out a high street promotion ‘Hello Again Hackney’ campaign, ‘My Virtual Neighbourhoods’ and lots of different initiatives.

5.4.22 The officer informed the high streets data is from GLA high streets data service, town centre health checks and a retail study from 2017.

5.4.23 In terms of the support to businesses in the local high street, this was mainly the forms of support outlined earlier: grants, business rates relief and the bespoke grant programs created by the council (specifically focused on the high street and town centre businesses).

5.4.24 The key feedback received from businesses during the pandemic is the need for financial support to pay the rent and bills to effectively keep the business operational.

5.4.25 The focus over the last 2 years has been to get the financial support out to businesses.

5.5 Questions, Answers and Discussions

(i) Members asked if the council was collating data on diversity and protected characteristics for businesses?

(ii) Members asked if the grant programme had resulted in any under claiming from specific businesses and if any particular grants were not taken up? Members also enquired if the uptake was low did the Council know why these businesses were not claiming?

(iii) Members referred to the vast amount of data collected and asked about the impact on the local economy over the last 2 years (pre-covid up to now) and if there was any economic scaring or if all businesses had rebounded?

(iv) Members asked what business sectors were still suffering the economic affects and what can we do about that?

(v) Members referred to the absence of figures in relation the support provided. Members asked how the Council has assessed the effectiveness of its work and how the council is evaluating?

(vi) Members asked what criteria was being used to make decision on allocations; what the Council expected to see and how the council will judge if they are successful?

(vii) Members acknowledged the Council’s primary focus has been on getting the money out to businesses to protect existing business but pointed out there also needed to be an evaluation of where the economy is in comparison to where it was. This would give an indication of progress or regression, economic scarring and resilience as a result of the support the council provided. Members also suggested this information should show how much was attributed to the council passporting money and how much to the bespoke support developed.

(viii) Members asked to see in the first meeting of the new municipal year an economic evaluation outlining pre and post pandemic. Not just information about the economy and the businesses themselves but also where and how the Council understands the impact of the government actions taken and Hackney Council action to support businesses. Members commented if the Council could demonstrate the number of businesses it managed to sustain this would be an extraordinary result. Members added they were not sure if this had been achieved and how the council managed to do this. That would be good to understand.

(ix) Members commented that this council budget was quite small in terms of council spend. Therefore, it would be good to understand the value or success from this spend.

(x) Members suggested this was presented in a format that demonstrated that over several years 2018,2019,2020 etc. by sectors to show the changes.

In response the Head of Area Regeneration explained in response to the number of businesses this has increased slightly / roughly remained the same. There was not a significant reduction in businesses in borough.

The officer pointed out the Council has not had an economic function for several years. An economic development function was being created to understand the economy. This function is not fully operational. The officer highlighted they have not had a dedicated economic development team, and this was currently in the process of being formed.

In response to Members questions about diversity the officer explained for all business grant applications they ask businesses to complete an equalities and diversity form, but this is not a statutory requirement, so completion is optional, but they do have some data. For the bespoke grants created they have not evaluated this data set because this is still live. The service areas current focus is on the distribution of grants by the government deadline of 31st March 2022. The officer informed if the funds are not distributed by that deadline they will be reclaimed by the government.

In response to the question about under claiming for main business grants the issue has been false claims. The Council is working through a large volume of applications from businesses. There have been a number who were not businesses. The council needs to ensure they are not giving out money to businesses who should not be claiming the grant. This required a lot of analysis. It was pointed out this issue is not specific to Hackney, other councils have experienced the same high levels of fraudulent claims and paid out money incorrectly. The council has needed to ensure their checks are robust, but they are confident in their distributions of funds to businesses.

For each bespoke grant the officer informed in the previous SEG meeting in February figures were provided on the amounts given. In terms of the number of businesses awarded a grant they are in the process of evaluating the data. After the 31st March they will compile a report following analysis of the information.

In response to the questions about pre covid, now and the economic scarring the Economic Development Manager from LBH added the government data provides information up to March 2021. The March 2022 data which will help to understand how many businesses have remained afloat will not be available until October 2022. The council has very good data about spend on the borough high streets. This is a live data dashboard. This has showed with each restriction spend plummeted but then increased again when relaxed. Dalston recovered and in Hackney Central spend levels increased to beyond pre pandemic levels. But this information needs further analysis and investigation to understand the reason for the new trend.

An area they want to investigate further is the government statistical information showing 24,000 registered businesses. It was noted that across the UK there are reports that approximately 40-60% are not registered. This data does not include sole traders who are not registered for VAT and who do not have PAYE. There are gaps with this area of data and a data set they will look to improve in the future. This is a really important area for Hackney because many people in this business area are normally in the arts and cultural sector.

The Strategic Director Inclusive Economy, Corporate Policy & New Homes from LBH commented the Council has not had the analytical capability in place to analyse the data. The Head of Area Regeneration and her team have been working to improve this over the last 18 months / 2 years. An Economic Development Manager had been appointed and was building a team.

The Director accepted the points made about having comparisons data and graphs. The Director explained they would build on this work and bring an update to the Commission in relation to the strategy and metrics.

The Director pointed out if you look at PAYE there has been an increase of approximately 2.5% from November 2021 to pre pandemic levels in Hackney. In reference to the 24,000 business units reported this number has remained stable over the last 3 years. The Director acknowledged the request for information the Commission wanted presented to be able to assess and understand the performance of the local economy.

(xi) The Chair closed the item with the following comments:

• It was reassuring to hear and see the statistics development and see the analysis.

• It was important for the Commission to see this analysis so they can start to interrogate the information and understand the economy.

• The public sector not only has a role to shape the economy but how it interacts with it.

• The Council needs know the current situation and have data to benchmark in order to make predictions about the future.

• Taking into consideration the previous discussion about continual economic uncertainty the Council needs to accept that economic instability will continue to be the new normal. Members urged the council to understand what this will mean for its residents and business survival.

• 5.6 The Strategic Director, Sustainability and Public Realm introduced this night-time economy section of this item and made the following main points.

• 5.6.1 At the onset of the pandemic the pubs and clubs all closed down and the night-time economy stopped overnight.

5.6.2 Hackney is one of the main boroughs across London lobbying to get the Home Office to amend the legislation to ensure the requirement to pay the late-night levy for pubs and clubs is removed. Explaining the late-night levy is paid by these establishments to support the enforcement costs related to the night-time economy.

5.6.3 But the Home Office has not amended the legislation so Hackney Council decided to trigger the provision that exists within the legislation to provide a reduction for premises which adhere to the best practice scheme. The Council implemented the Hackney Night Accreditation scheme which is the Hackney Nights Portal (a one stop shop for all the pubs and clubs) to provide training and support in order to deal with the pandemic. This portal provided information related to training, covid protection and all other information. The licensing team worked with environmental health and public health to deliver monthly advice sessions for licensees to help navigate the covid restrictions and officers attended local pub watch meetings.

5.6.4 The work by Hackney has been seen as exemplar in London and Hackney Council has been working with Westminster Council to develop their scheme.

5.6.5 In terms of outdoor trading and dining under the Business Planning Act 2020 the Government ensured licensees could get alfresco dining and the onus was on local authorities to expedite the process with a small fee. This was a challenge, but the Council successfully completed this by the deadline set. The Council had been proactive in allowing a lot of tables and chairs outside.

5.6.6 For market traders the council did not charge traders for storage, provided free business support, application support and other online activities. The Director pointed out many local authorities closed their markets but Hackney they kept Ridley Road Market open. This market is recognised as one of the most important markets in the borough for essential goods.

5.6.7 The Council created a simple covid risk assessment interview and 6-point plan document for all returning licence holders and businesses to ensure they were operating in a covid secure manner and were set up to navigate the restrictions during the pandemic.

5.6.8 The Council also created a service specific roadmap for a phased reopening to ensure each site across the borough was set up to succeed and maximise opportunities for a positive economic recovery. A multidisciplinary office was set up to support to businesses with a covid response. The team visit these premises to provide all the support they needed to open safely.

5.6.9 There is a lot of data coming in now about the health of the night-time economy. The economy is extremely resilient and because it has been a young population destination area it has bounced back well after the pandemic.

5.6.10 The information received will be entered into the Council’s statement of licensing policy with a revised cumulative impact assessment and study of the night-time economy. The revised policy will be published in 2023.

5.6.11 A requirement in the Licensing Act is to keep a public register of licenses. In March 2020 the Hackney register recorded 1149 premise licenses. This is slightly down from 1165 the previous year.

5.6.12 One of the challenges they have experienced is that the licensing regulatory services and planning were impacted severely by cyber-attack which wiped out a large proportion of their data. The teams have been working to restore the data. There will be a further report at the end of the month to review the number of licenses across the borough.

5.6.13 The information being collated currently represents new applications coming in for 2020 and in 2021. Business activity continues at a relatively high pace, with a total of 234 applications. Approximately 10% above the 3-year average pre-pandemic. The night-time economy appears to be rebounding well.

5.6.14 The level of new applications received has been consistent. Although in the summer of 2020 when sales were permitted off-site the council witnessed a huge increase in the number of applications received alongside an increase in antisocial behaviour.

5.6.15 Temporary Event Notices (TENs) can be seen as a barometer of activity as the number of these received generally reflects the level of activity and health of the NTE. Following the onset of the pandemic, the number of TENs decreased. The council is now seeing a good return to TENs applications and a gradual increase in activity during 2021. The Council is expecting the number of TENs to increase in 2022 in line with the Platinum Jubilee Celebration and other celebrations like the World Cup.

5.6.16 One of the areas of proficiency in the night time economy is the rapid increase in grocery delivery services. There were no businesses of this type in Hackney at the end of 2020. However, by the end of 2021 there were 9 delivery services operating, with a further two that had been granted then surrendered in the same year. The sector has become increasingly competitive now the self-isolation rules have become rendered.

5.6.17 The Council will be observing these businesses over the next 2/3 years. But as household incomes become more squeezed this could affect these businesses.

5.6.18 In reference to an inclusive economy at the start of reopening (after the pandemic restrictions and Brexit) there was an influx of inexperienced hospitality staff. This presented challenges with the reopening of the economy. However, the Hackney Nights Accreditation scheme provided online training for those staff. The Hackney Nights Portal provides training certificate, accreditation and a 30% reduction in the levy if businesses sing-up.

5.6.19 The courses look at inclusivity of the night-time economy. For example, how to identify hate crime, substance abuse, limit violence against women and links into the sustainability criteria. The license premises signing up to the portal are taking steps to actively reduce environmental impact too.

5.6.20 The wellbeing of staff is extremely important and there are training events for this in the portal too.

5.6.21 The certificate can be put on display in the premises. This helps to support the council’s inclusive economy objectives because it ensures the night-time economy is much safer.

Further details can be found in the presentation are in the agenda on pages 23-42.

5.7 Questions, Answers and Discussions

(i) Members commended officers for their work on markets and commented markets are growing and valued.

(ii) Members referred to the information about the increase of TENs being a positive indicator of economic activity. Members commented that TENs were originally implemented for jubilee weekends, church halls etc. Whereas now TENs are used for other types of events (particularly in Hoxton East and Shoreditch Ward). Members commented there are residents who would object to that characterisation for TENs.

(iii) Members highlighted TENs seemed to be used by pre-existing licensees to extend their license activities e.g., in big car park outside (particularly last summer). The observation was TENs seemed to be used to circumvent the usual licensing system. Members asked for the Council’s views especially given the positive view about TENs.

(iv) In reference to licensing during covid Members commented in their view the council reached the right place in the end in relation to outdoor space. But Members queried if the Council was slow to react. Members were of the view there was some missed months for elements of the economy. Members referred to Westminster Council’s response and commented Hackney seemed slower and unsure about what to do.

(v) In reference to the night time economy rebounding quickly in Hackney. Members asked if one area was doing better than another e.g., Shoreditch compared to Dalston or was it the same across the borough?

(vi) Members referred the Council’s work to encourage the night-time economy, closing streets having more street foods etc. Members asked if the Council would consider continuing this to strengthen the local economy offer?

(vii) Members referred to the points made about sustainability and asked how Hackney can further the green agenda through licensing levers such as reducing plastic. Members also asked in relation to the 21st Century streets, if there were opportunities associated to outside dining that aligned with the Council’s aspirations in relation to net zero.

(viii) In response the Strategic Director, Sustainability and Public Realm explained officers do hold a conservative view of TENs like Cllrs because the officers will be responsible for managing any fall out within the community. However, TENs are an indicative indicator of the health of the night-time economy. Notwithstanding the Council does work very closely with the Police. If there are concerns a TEN could lead to antisocial behaviour it would not be approved for license. Although it was acknowledged TENs had increased due to the restrictions on having a drink inside a premises. This resulted in alfresco drinking which caused its own issues particularly for people living in and around the London Fields area.

(ix) Members asked how many TENs the Council or the Police objected to?

The Strategic Director, Sustainability and Public Realm replied he did not have the exact figure at the meeting but at the last review approximately 15% were objected to, by the Police, Council or the Licensing Team.

In response to alfresco dining the Strategic Director, Sustainability and Public Realm acknowledged they were a bit slower to act and not as quick as Westminster Council. But the Council did not want a replicate some of the scenes witnessed in Soho but learnt from this.

The Council was proactive in approving the applications but the main challenge they were experiencing in approving applications related to the quality of the information submitted and objections from blue light services because of concerns about blocking access for fire services. The key issue was obtaining quick responses back from emergency services in relation to access for some streets. This was an issue for areas like Shoreditch with the width of pathways not being suitable for pedestrians and tables and chairs. But there were some areas they closed off like Broadway to allow more room for tables and chairs.

In response to the questions about the sector rebounding and any area doing better than the other. The Strategic Director, Sustainability and Public Realm explained the statistics for the number of applicants received show the sector is rebounding strongly. The more prominent rebound is Shoreditch and Dalston.

In relation to Shoreditch, it has its own unique problems, but they are working with the Police to manage the rise in antisocial behaviour. The MPS have modified their team and there is a better working relationship.

In response to the questions about sustainability and using the licensing levers in the process. The Strategic Director, Sustainability and Public Realm explained the accreditation scheme has been configured in a way whereby they sign up to get recyclable glasses and recyclable plastics. They are also working with commercial waste and environmental services to work with businesses to increase recycling and look at their containers. It was acknowledged that there is still more work to do on sustainability and the products the night-time economy uses.

(x) Beyond recycling and commercial waste Members asked how businesses were being supported particularly hospitality to reduce the carbon footprint with food and air quality in relation to delivery services (Deliveroo, Just Eat etc.) big and small. Members asked how the Council used its licensing regulatory powers to support cleaner and ideally zero emissions vehicles for delivery services?

In response the Strategic Director, Sustainability and Public Realm explained under the licensing regulations Hackney Council was the first in the UK to introduce the ultra-low emission zone for Shoreditch night-time economy. The Council is also working with big businesses to reduce the volume of deliveries they do in vehicles and looking at the use of cargo bikes. Licensing is working with transport colleagues to push for sustainable modes of transport, and they are looking at other interventions to improve the air quality and increase the amount of air quality monitors.

(xi) Members expressed concern about safety in relation to e-scooters road safety and the threat to pedestrians.

(xii) Members referred to the previous question about the current use of TENs not fitting with their initial design for use. Members asked if there were any policy recommendations that the Council can use to address resident concerns or lobbying for national policy change?

(xiii) Members referred to the increase in outdoor dining during the pandemic and asked how the council actively sought to protected footpaths to ensure pedestrian access particularly for the disabled population. Members asked if this was a conflict with the Council’s policies to keep pathways clear?

(xiv) Members referred to the delivery services and commented it was good to see that electric bikes could go through the road closures and that the council is giving a competitive advantage to people in sustainable modes of transport.

In response the Strategic Director Sustainability and Public Realm of LBH explained that when covid hit there was a bonfire of the current regulations. The new regulation implemented removed a lot of the bureaucracy. This had a negative impact in terms of increasing the time allowed to obtain a TEN. The license authority had very little powers to curtail this. The Council is writing to the Government about some of the legislation changes.

The Service Area Manager from LBH added there is a group engaging with government ministers about the potential permanency of repayment licenses. A parliamentary debate was scheduled to take place in March 2022 to make them permanent. The officer pointed out the current legislation expires 30th September 2022. However, this has been paused while they engage with local authorities. Prior to implementation of this new process the Government had only engaged with Westminster and City of London. Both local authorities do not use pavement licences and all other local authorities do. Therefore, the Government was void of a view of how this would impact the population.

In regards to the licensing process under the Business Plan Act. Hackney is one of 3 out of 33 boroughs that did not have any automatic licenses issued under consent. The officer explained if the council did not adhere to the strict 10 working day deadline the license was granted automatically and had full validity up to 30th September 2022. Officers have been working to complete the process to these very tight timescales. In addition, the officer highlighted having the licence set at £100 and for a longer period of time would bring a degree of disruption to residents through anti-social behaviour, increased littering and street drinking.

Hackney Council has been quite Stringent on pavement licenses becoming implemented and the first to implement a regular review after 3 months as opposed to 12 months. Hackney is utilizing the legislation to obtain feedback from residents and other local businesses about any negative activity. Where needed the Council has taken action to revoke a license or place additional conditions to manage negative behaviours.

In response to the other questions the Strategic Director Sustainability and Public Realm of LBH highlighted Westminster Council has learnt some harsh lessons from their roll out in Soho and Charlotte Street in relation to anti-social behaviour and the complaints received from local residents. The approach taken in Hackney has been to grant alfresco dining (table and chairs) unless there is a serious risk of obstruction of the pavement for disabled people, parents with prams, anti-social behaviour or impedes emergency vehicles. Therefore, there is a presumption in favour. But they have taken a pragmatic approach and if there are any of the above issues the Council will not support the license. Business complaints about not having a license approved have usually been rejected on strong grounds.

The Service Area Manager from LBH added that for the process of license applications they issue documentation which includes hyperlinks in the report so they can see the Council’s alfresco guidance. Hackney has a guidance tool that takes businesses through a journey of the different options such as a shop front license and the different approaches i.e. whether to have a pavement license. In comparison to some of the documents produced by other local authorities. For example, Westminster Council documentation is viewed to be very technical and not supportive to businesses. Accelerating them into trading in an environment that was negative to residents and not a sustainable business.

In relation to the current licenses held in the borough Hackney has the second lowest level of complaints related to alfresco dining. Based on the feedback from businesses Hackney has incorporated updates to ensure then information was relevant during the pandemic. This has been a useful tool to help business navigate the challenges of the pandemic.

(xv) Members referred to the anaerobic digestion in relation to food waste for venues and licensing. Members asked if the council can consider investing in anaerobic digestion and make it part of Hackney Light and Power company so the council can supply lower carbon gas and reduce dependencies on supplies from places like Russia.

(xvi) As a point of clarification Members referred to the Hackney nights sustainability factor and asked if 30% of businesses were engaged with this. Members acknowledged the Portal deals with sustainable issues but asked if it would be possible to include an advisory note with all license applications that are approved to draw attention to sustainable working practices and avoid single use plastics.

In response the Strategic Director Sustainability and Public Realm confirmed it was a 30% reduction in the levy.

In response to the question about single use plastic the Strategic Director Sustainability and Public Realm advised the Council can consider the suggestions in relation to Hackney Light and Power, but they need to explore cost implications.

In reference to the advisory note, the Council could look to add an advisory note to license applications that are approved. The Director explained they are trying to take this a step further by making it a requirement by adding it to the other sustainability initiatives for net zero.

(xvii) The Chair closed the item and made the following closing comment.

• It was good to ban single use plastic but also a technical and policy challenge to find a viable alternative particularly for small and medium sized businesses. Members wanted the Council to ensure they are enabling rather than dictating things that could have unintended consequences for residents and businesses.

Supporting documents: