By Julian Whittle

Last updated at 12:13, Monday, 13 October 2008

Carlisle's only registered sex shop wants the city council to slash its licence fee.

Under pressure: The Private Shop in Carlisle is losing business to internet sex websites, so it has asked the council to reduce its licence fee

The Private Shop in London Road has to pay £13,278 every year for a “sex establishment licence”.

It says that is too much, especially as competition from websites selling sex toys and DVDs is putting high-street sex shops out of business.

Carlisle City Council’s regulatory panel, which meets on Wednesday, is likely to halve the fee to £6,639.

A report to councillors says that the licence fee was set at £1,000 in 1989, raised to £7,000 in 1990 and then in line with inflation each year since.

A survey of 44 other councils showed huge variations.

The lowest licence fee was £625 and the highest £20,360.

But the averages of £6,197 for a new licence and £4,971 for renewals were well below the rate in Carlisle.

The Private Shop argues that high fees are unfair given that pubs that transfer their premises licence, for example, pay only £23.

Mike McCann, chairman of the Adult Industry Trade Association, has written in support of the Private Shop.

His letter says: “Over the last three years the world wide web has totally changed the way that consumers purchase adult products and has had a dramatic declining effect on all our licensed sex shops.

“Market conditions have changed considerably and high licence fees cannot be sustained without having an adverse effect on the whole of the UK adult industry.

“There is a serious danger that these small but important and legitimate businesses could reduce dramatically [in number].”

He adds that the number of licensed sex establishments in the UK peaked at just over 400 in 2005-6 but has since fallen to between 340 and 350.

First published at 11:46, Monday, 13 October 2008
Published by http://www.newsandstar.co.uk