A NOISE limiter must be installed to control the “thumping bass” at a Wisbech restaurant after police and residents objected to managerial problems and late night disturbances.

Councillors reviewed the premises licence at Spice Restaurant and Bar, in Falcon Road, at a Fenland District Licensing Committee hearing last Monday.

The police had applied for the review, stating that there was an “inability to manage the premises correctly and abide by the conditions of the current licence”.

One nearby resident said the “heavy thumping bass” from the restaurant was a public nuisance and that there had been many instances of drunken behaviour around the area.

Councillors - who visited the site in May - admitted that a “problem exists” and opted to cut the hours of live and recorded music from 10pm-1am to 10pm-12midnight.

These reduced hours were put in place for a period of two months, to allow licence holder Khalid Mahmood time to “address the issues”.

Councillor Michael Humphrey, licensing committee chairman, said: “The noise limiter must always be connected to equipment which is capable of controlling the base levels within the amplified music.”

Councillors also ordered that children should be excluded from the premises after 8pm and suggested that staff should be trained to understand the requirements of the premises licence.