Mr. Paul Clancy:

We are looking for a definition of what a cultural amenity actually is. It is not clear in the proposed Bill. If it is museums and art galleries, that makes sense but if it is a community centre in a rural town that can modify itself to become a museum one night and an art gallery the next, on a particular Saturday night for example, it is only going to take trade away from a pub that is trying to survive on that particular night. That is when pubs make their money. If a community centre was franchised out, the chances are that it would become a business proposition for somebody who would again compete against the local pub and take away the local trade. We are looking for clarity on what is a cultural amenity and how a venue can get a particular status. That is our concern. We understand allowing museums and art galleries. We would like restrictions around opening and closing and when alcohol is served but in principle we agree with the cultural amenity licensing. However, we do not want it to be something that anybody can open up anywhere without any proper regulation or abiding by the standards that a publican has to abide by.