The Nottingham City Council Bill, a Private Bill sponsored by the city’s civic authorities, aims to cut crime and control squat trading by regulating the trade in secondhand goods.
The measures are similar to those introduced under the Kent Act, though less far reaching as they only require registration and the following of stipulated rules for trading in the city limits. In Kent, those whose businesses are based in the county have to conduct trade under the terms of the Act even when doing business beyond the county boundaries.
The Nottingham City Council Bill, submitted for consideration at the end of last year, has already had its Second Reading and is due to go to the committee stage soon. Its relatively swift passage through parliament means that it has only just come to the attention of the trade after the dealer association LAPADA alerted members in Nottingham to their likely responsibilities under the Act.
LAPADA chief executive John Newgas initially feared that the Act would apply to the Newark fairground, home to the country’s largest antiques fair, which would have led to a mountain of red tape. However, Nottingham City Council have confirmed that the fairground would be outside the Act’s
jurisdiction.
LAPADA alert members to Kent Act Mark II
NOTTINGHAM is set to get its own version of the Kent Act, forcing antiques dealers and other traders to register if they want to do business in the city.
