A NIGHTCLUB owner in Barnard Castle is threatening to close his business if his entertainment licence is revoked.

Teesdale District Council's licensing committee is to discuss taking action against Andy Power, landlord of the Raby Arms Hotel, in Barnard Castle Market Place, after allegations that the terms of his Public Entertainment Licence were not being met.

Mr Power's licence was granted in July 2003, on the condition that he met noise levels agreed by the council's environmental health department.

But residents living near the club complained that their lives were being made a misery by noise and music coming from the building.

Peter Fayle, Teesdale council's head of planning and building control, visited the nightclub on September 5, and found the noise levels were too high. He has referred the matter to the licensing committee.

"Basically the only reason this has come back to the council is because there are two people who are always complaining," said Mr Power. "I've actually got a petition with 200 names on it who support me. This all comes down to noise. I don't agree with how they measure the music.

"The council officials come here and measure the noise five feet away from the speakers. They should be measuring it from outside.

"If I don't have this licence I'll just board up the pub, and there will be another empty shop in the town, which no one wants."

John Pearson, the council's environmental health officer, defended the way readings were taken.

He said: "The club has a piece of electrical equipment which cuts the noise off after a certain level. That level is something that is satisfactory for the people living around about. The noise reading is taken from the same position that the equipment was set at.

"Obviously I'm not measuring what people outside hear, I'm measuring against a standard that was set previously."