Northern Lights keeps its licence
Northern Lights keeps its licence
Monday, March 9, 2015
Over the last couple of weeks I’ve been contacted by a number of residents worried about the possibility that the Northern Lights, a bar and restaurant that has become a much-loved hub, not just for the city’s Scandinavian and Finnish communities but much more widely too, was at risk of losing its licence. Not it seems for unacceptable levels of anti-social behaviour or noise nuisance, rather for the charge of it being a ‘vertical drinking’ establishment, and for not being ‘food led’.

I wrote to the Brighton and Hove City Council ahead of the Licensing Panel meeting to state that removing the licence would be hugely disproportionate to the accusations levelled at the Northern Lights. I'm delighted that the Licensing Panel agreed and the licence has not been revoked.

I’ve since met with the Northern Light’s owner, Pauliina Talvensaari. She told me more about what led up to the licence review, and I’ll be writing to Sussex Police to express my concerns about the way in which the situation has been handled.

Join The Discussion