The son of a notorious Newcastle hardman is being “unfairly treated” by city authorities in a dispute over booze sales, councillors have been told.
A barrister for John Henry Sayers Jr claimed on Friday that it would be wrong to deny him the right to serve alcoholic drinks from a food kiosk in the city centre on the basis of his father’s infamous history in Newcastle’s criminal underworld. Police have alleged that proposals to sell drinks, including mulled wine and hot toddies, from the Saye’s To Go stall in Northumberland Street would leave it “vulnerable to serious organised crime” and may be an attempt for the family to gain “legitimacy” in the eyes of Tyneside decision-makers.
Councillors are now set to rule on whether or not to award the controversial licence, which had first sparked a row earlier this year, following a Newcastle City Council hearing on Friday morning. Barrister Jeremy Barton told the authority’s licensing sub-committee that it would be “wholly wrong” to deny his client a licence because of his father, John Henry Sr, and argued that other traders are not subject to criminal background checks on their family members.
Read More: Sayers row with police reignited as new bid launched to sell booze on Northumberland Street
He also claimed that a recent arson attack on the kiosk was being used against Mr Sayers Jr, adding: “I would submit that he is being treated unfairly, there is no other way to put that.” Mr Barton told councillors that the Sayers family had a long history in Newcastle’s street trading community and that Saye’s To Go had operated without causing any nuisance on Northumberland Street since it opened in 2021, calling its proposed booze offer “microscopic” compared to the current Christmas markets.
He denied that the kiosk, which would sell wine and spirits but not beer, would become a “Mecca” for drinkers and risk a spike in anti-social behaviour in one of the busiest parts of the city. Mr Barton added: “It is not designed to be cool. It is somewhere you expect the more mature customer will enjoy a tipple and a drink as they walk the high street. For those reasons, I struggle to see why such extreme comments are being used in relation to what I submit is a pretty simple offering.”
Ahead of the hearing, Northumbria Police’s Chief Inspector David Wheeler wrote to the council to say that any involvement of Mr Sayers Sr in the kiosk would “potentially expose or render such premises (and those who work on or have an involvement in the same) vulnerable to serious organised crime occurring on or in connection with the premises”.
Mr Sayers Sr was jailed in 2018 after being convicted of perverting the course of justice by getting convicted killer Michael McDougall to falsely confess to a drive-by shooting outside the Tup Tup nightclub. An investigation was also launched this summer after an attack on his home in Byker.
CI Wheeler said: “I have concerns that the real purpose of the application is to gauge the Responsible Authorities position and/or to seek to obtain a premises licence and the legitimacy this could potentially lend to the business activities of the Sayers family/any further licensing applications.” The police’s barrister, James Kemp, added at Friday’s virtual meeting that the Christmas market is a “carefully managed exercise” and not a fair comparison, calling the Saye’s to Go plan “bland” and arguing that it “can’t get away” from problems arising from its location at such a busy spot.
While Mr Barton said his client would install CCTV cameras within the kiosk and offered to bring forward its proposed closing time from 6pm to 4.30pm, city council licensing boss Jonathan Bryce called the plan “ill thought out” and claimed it gave little regard to council policy. Angela Wallis, the council’s environmental health expert, agreed that selling alcohol on the street all year round was “not appropriate” for that section of Northumberland Street and raised concerns about a lack of toilets.
The sub-committee is due to issue its decision on Mr Sayers Jr’s licence application within five working days.
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