London boroughs take tougher approach over lap-dancing: BBC

Ten out of London’s 32 councils are reviewing their policy on strip clubs, according to research conducted by the BBC.

The report said a further eight boroughs are proposing to implement a “nil” policy, which would mean no licence would be granted to new venues.

The moves follow a change in the law in April this year which allowed councils to require all lap dancing clubs in their area – including existing venues – to apply for a sex establishment licence if they wanted to continue operating lawfully.

The BBC said Home Office figures showed the number of lap-dancing clubs in the UK had doubled to more than 300 since 2004.

In London, Westminster has the most clubs with 27, followed by Camden with nine, and Islington and Hillingdon with five each.

Westminster has no plans to change its licensing policy, however. Its head of licensing Andy Ralph told the BBC that its focus was on cracking down on illegal sex establishments. "We're working with police and landlords to achieve this,” he said.

Club owner Peter Stringfellow suggested that councils proposing the nil policy were in "panic-mode".

"If the councils are on some sort of moral crusade to close their boroughs entirely to this kind of entertainment, it is wrong," he said.

He warned that the adoption of a nil policy would see illegal venues open instead.