Nightclubs could be allowed to keep 4am licences in showdown meeting

Ten Glasgow nightclubs could be allowed to extend their hours following a pilot scheme that was delayed by the Covid pandemic.

Drew Sandelands, Local Democracy Reporter

12th Oct 2023

Posted in

Glasgow City

Nightclubs in Glasgow are set to find out whether they can continue opening until 4am.

Some clubs were allowed to extend their hours under a pilot scheme launched in 2019.

The process was delayed due to the covid pandemic, and the pilot period expanded. The city’s Licensing Board will now meet tomorrow to decide whether 4am licences should be retained.

Councillors on the board will hear from licensing officials and Police Scotland on their experiences during the pilot before making a decision.

Ten clubs are set to find out whether their licence applications have been successful.

They are: Bamboo, Savoy, Sub Club, Polo Lounge, 90 Glassford Street, The Cathouse, The Garage, Tropicana & Vogue, Kokomo and the Berkeley Suite.

When the 4am proposal was initially announced in 2018, the then chair of the Licensing Board, Cllr Matt Kerr, said there had been a “strong view” in discussions over licensing policy that a “more European approach would avoid the rush to consume alcohol before closing time”.

He said the board wanted to “support the licensed trade as much as we can while also ensuring we still provide the safeguards expected of us by the licensing legislation”.

The pilot would “draw in evidence from the likes of the police and the health service”, he added.