Council / Renewal granted for knitwear van street trader licence
A MOBILE knitwear trader has had her street traders’ licence renewed after receiving the backing from a majority of councillors.
It came despite Shetland Islands Council’s (SIC) environmental health department objecting to knitwear producer BAKKA getting a renewed licence to sell goods from two sites in the centre of Lerwick.
This was due to how BAKKA’s Dr Mary Macgregor would be selling goods of the “same or similar class and description” as shops on the street within 50 metres of her sites.
The same issue saw her initial application in 2020 rejected, but it was granted on appeal.
Elected members on the SIC’s licensing committee heard on Monday that there had been no objections raised by local businesses – with the majority of councillors happy to approve the application.
Lerwick North and Bressay Stephen Leask was a lone voice in saying the application should be refused, due to the objection from environmental health, but he did not receive any backing.
It was back in 2020 that Macgregor was allowed to sell from the BAKKA van at sites in Charlotte Place and Burns Walk in Lerwick, following an appeal made through the court.
After being renewed in 2023 the permit has again come up for renewal, but SIC’s environmental health and planning departments objected to Macgregor’s application to renew her street traders licence – with the form again saying that her goods are too similar to nearby established shops.
The report to members said the Burns Walk site is within 50 metres of the Eldamato wool shop, the Peerie Shop and Burns Lane Clothing – all of which sell knitwear – environmental health said.
It also said the Charlotte Place site is close to Harry’s Department Store, which “on occasion sell knitwear”.
Councillors were told on Monday that none of these businesses had objected to the renewal, but the process had not been publicly advertised.
In 2020, Macgregor disputed the view that BAKKA’s goods were of the “same or similar class and description” to goods in nearby shops.
She said her Fair Isle work was unlike other products being sold on the street.
At Monday’s meeting Macgregor said one of the four shops listed in the new objection from environmental health was outwith the 50 metres.
She said the other three shops are selling the same goods as they did in the past, “so there is absolutely no reason why the licence cannot be renewed”.
During debate Shetland Central councillor Catherine Hughson said because there had been no objections from businesses stated in the report, and that there has been a precedent regarding the van operating in the past, the application should be granted.
Environmental health meanwhile had alleged that Macgregor had been selling knitwear from the BAKKA van more than her licence allowed. It said she must not trade from any site for more than 28 days per calendar year without permission from the planning authority.
However, it alleged the BAKKA van had traded from Burns Walk 42 times in 2023 and a further 50 times in 2024.
The planning department also objected to BAKKA’s application for renewal, saying that she would require planning permission to trade from the sites if it was sited in the same location for more than 28 days.
But councillors were told this did not play any part in the decision needing to be made at Monday’s meeting.
SIC solicitor Paul Sutherland said if the application was granted and the 28-day condition was breached, “that’s a matter for future enforcement”.
Macgregor explained that there had been issues with access at the Charlotte Place site, a matter which she had engaged with the roads department on.
But she said she should be able to trade more often from that site now.
The roads department meanwhile offered no objections to the latest application.
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