The Licensing Sub-Committee of St Helens Council met on 7 October 2025 to consider a new premises licence application for Newton Mini Market and review the minutes of a previous meeting. Councillor Keith Laird, Cabinet Member for People, Performance & IT, Councillor Susan Murphy MBE, Cabinet Member for Localities, Culture and Heritage, Communities Together Member Champion, and Councillor Victor Floyd, Leader of Reform UK Group, were scheduled to be in attendance.

New Premises Licence Application – Newton Mini Market

The sub-committee were scheduled to consider a new premises licence application for Newton Mini Market, located at 22 Bridge Street, Earlestown, Newton Le Willows, WA12 9BA.

The applicant, Mr Hawkar Hassan ALI, was applying as an individual who intends to carry on a business involving the use of the premises for licensable activities. According to the application form, Mr Hawkar Hassan ALI, born on 21 July 1990 and a British national, lives in Leeds.

The application was for:

• The supply of alcohol for consumption off the premises between the hours of 08:00 and 23:00 every day.

Mr Hawkar Hassan ALI was named as the Designated Premises Supervisor¹.

The application included details of steps to be taken to promote the four licensing objectives²: the prevention of crime and disorder, public safety, the prevention of public nuisance, and the protection of children from harm. These included:

• Operating a CCTV system.
• Maintaining a written log of authorised alcohol sales for staff without personal licences.
• Staff training on Challenge 25³, ID checks, refusal of sales, licensing objectives, cigarette sales, age verification, proxy sales and the legal rights of Trading Standards[^5].
• Maintaining an incident book.
• Storing spirits behind the counter.
• A strong steel door at the rear entrance with CCTV coverage.
• Management and staff to observe the external area of the shop and ask suspected loiterers to leave.
• Commercial refuse to be collected between 07:00 and 20:00.
• Operating a Challenge 25 policy.
• Maintaining a refusals book.

A representation against the application was received from Collette Rai, Principal Trading Standards Officer, on the grounds of the prevention of crime and disorder. Ms Rai stated that Mr Hawkar Hassan ALI is listed on Companies House as being the director of Hawkar Supermarket Ltd and Hawkar Ali Limited. She also stated that intelligence available to Trading Standards indicates that a business trades as Carpatica 2 at 24-26 Tong Road, Leeds, LS12 1HX, and that this premises has a history of selling illicit cigarettes and hand rolling tobacco. Ms Rai stated that West Yorkshire Trading Standards links Hawker Supermarket Ltd and Mr Hawkar Hassan ALI to that premises. She also stated that Lincolnshire Trading Standards submitted intelligence indicating that Mr Hawkar Hassan ALI admitted to being the manager of Super Sam Convenience Store at 78 High Street, Lincoln, and that illicit tobacco products had been seized from those premises.

Ms Rai also noted that the application stated that Newton Mini Market is an established small grocery store , but that she had observed the premises being fitted out in March 2025 and that it remained closed in August 2025. She also noted that no food business registration had been received from the business.

Minutes

The sub-committee were scheduled to review the minutes of the meeting held on 31 July 2025.

The previous meeting included a review of the premises licence for Anatolia Grill, located at 51-53 Duke Street, St Helens, WA10 2JF. The review application was made by Home Office Immigration Enforcement on the grounds that the premises had undermined the licensing objective of the prevention of crime and disorder. The Licensing Authority and Merseyside Police had made supporting representations. The sub-committee resolved to revoke the premises licence.