Hundreds of Norwich residents are furious that the City Council is refusing to allow their objections to late licences for many pubs across the city. The Council has, accidentally, misinformed many hundreds of Norwich residents about the deadline for objections to these licences. Having done so, it is now refusing to consider those objections that have come in before what it said the deadline was, but after what the deadline actually turned out to be.

An example is the application of the Garden House. The Council wrote to residents on 28 July, inviting them to put in objections to the Garden House's late licence application by 23 August. Then the Council moved the deadline for objections back to 23 July. As a result, of course, no valid objections were received to the Garden House's application, although there are many local residents who wanted to object. Thus this licence application, because of the Council's incompetence, will go through on the nod - unless the Council sees reason, and allows local residents to speak to the Licensing Committee in any case.

The Garden House is in Nelson ward. Councillor Bob Gledhill, Green Party Nelson ward Councillor, said: "It's essential that voices of local people be heard on these licence applications. That was quite obviously the intention of the government legislation. This consultation exercise in Norwich has broken down, through no fault of the residents, and the Council must take responsibility for mending it again. What is needed is for the Licensing Department to find a way of allowing all residents who put in objections before the deadlines they were told about, to have a say when these late licence applications come before the Licensing Committee."

Another example is the application of The Nelson and the Fat Cat, which are on the border of Wensum and Mancroft wards. Many residents have tried to object to these pubs new licence applications, and, though they all got their objections in on time (according to the letters they received from the Council), virtually all their objections are being rejected out of hand, without being heard.

Councillor Rupert Read, Green Wensum ward Councillor, said: "The Council simply has to change their line on this. Otherwise, they will have on their hands a public relations disaster of enormous proportions, and quite possibly they will be subject to legal action from disgusted residents, and to serious complaints to the Local Government Ombudsman. I have spoken to Council officers and to the Libdem Executive about this; so far, their responses have been unacceptable. I urge residents unhappy about this to make it loud and clear to the Council that they are not prepared to see this abrogation of democracy - which results from the Council's own ineptitude - to stand."

Norwich Green Party's Councillors will pursue this issue doggedly, until a satisfactory resolution is reached.