James Browne (Wexford, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I move:

That Dáil Éireann resolves that the period of operation of sections 1 to 7 and 9 of the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2021 (No. 14 of 2021) be extended for a further period of six months, beginning on the 1st day of December, 2023 and ending on the 31st day of May, 2024.

I am introducing a resolution on behalf of the Minister for Justice, Deputy McEntee, to extend the sunset clause in the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2021. The extension of this Act will allow the hospitality sector to continue to provide the sale or supply of intoxicating liquor in outdoor seating areas.

Deputies will be aware that the Act was introduced in July 2021. The provisions of the 2021 Act were in place until 30 November 2021 and have been further extended on four occasions by resolutions of each House of the Oireachtas, in November 2021, May 2022, November 2022 and May 2023. Section 9(4) of the Act provides that the relevant provisions of the Act can be extended for up to six months at a time if a resolution approving its continuation has been passed by both Houses of the Oireachtas. On 7 November 2023, the Government agreed the extension of the Act for a further six months. The Government took this decision in recognition of and response to the ongoing demand for such facilities, which allow businesses to operate with clarity and certainty with regard to the law around outdoor dining services. For this reason, I am introducing a proposal that the Act continue in operation until 31 May 2024.

The measures provided in the Act were put in place to facilitate licensed premises to provide outdoor seating in the context of the Covid-19 pandemic. These measures also allow An Garda Síochána to regulate and enforce these provisions in the course of its ordinary responsibilities in enforcing the licensing laws. They provide An Garda Síochána with the power to direct licenceholders to comply with this legislation as it relates to outdoor seating areas, facilitates the enforcement of this Act and is an important safeguard. It is essential that An Garda Síochána continue to have clarity on its powers for public order purposes and, equally, that owners of licensed premises understand their obligations to maintain order in outdoor public areas where they are selling alcohol.

Although Covid-19 is less prevalent, it is considered to be in the public's interest to provide for the sale or supply of intoxicating liquor in certain circumstances in seating areas located outside licensed premises. It allows licensees of such premises to conduct business and operate in these outdoor seating areas. It is important to extend this operational period for another six months to give clarity to licensed premises, local authorities and An Garda Síochána. The increased availability and popularity of outdoor dining and socialising have been welcomed by many. Its innovation is reflective of the demand for more variety of choice in the ways in which we socialise and the types of venues and social spaces that are available. This important extension also clarifies the position of licenceholders who wish to sell and serve alcohol adjacent to a licensed premises in an area approved by the relevant local authority. At present, these premises have no remedy to amend their licence to include that area under existing legislation.

Deputies will also be aware the Government gave its approval, on 25 October 2022, to the general scheme of the sale of alcohol Bill. The general scheme of the Bill proposed to reform the licensing framework in its entirety to bring it up to the expectations of modern society. This Bill provides for the modernisation and streamlining of our licensing laws and application process, some of which are over 200 years old. While work on this legislation is progressing, it is a time-consuming and labour-intensive task. Therefore, it is the intention of the Minister, Deputy McEntee, to shortly bring to Government a Bill which will contain heads to provide for a number of priority matters, including addressing the provisions for outdoor seating as part of the licensing process. The Minister intends to finalise a revised scheme this year in order to publish a sale of alcohol Bill by February 2023.

In the meantime, we need to extend the outdoor dining provisions provided for by the Civil Law (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 2021 to allow for ongoing certainty for all those operating in the licensing trade, their patrons, local authorities and An Garda Síochána. It will be crucial that the needs of those who may be impacted by the harms caused by alcohol abuse or over-consumption, including members of An Garda Síochána and local residents, are taken into account when decisions are being taken regarding licensing.

We are also mindful of the need to support An Garda Síochána with regard to the enforcement of the licensing framework and ensuring that public safety is protected. The Government is committed to taking action to tackle crime and anti-social behaviour. An Garda Síochána has been provided with the funding needed for additional tools and technology to fight crime in a digital era. This includes the introduction of new legislation to provide for body-worn cameras, reform CCTV schemes and expand the use of automatic licence plate recognition.

Community safety, it is worth saying, is a complex issue. It is a multi-agency, multisectoral and whole-of-government issue. Crime and anti-social behaviour have a number of complex, underlying and interlinked causes. Simply deploying more "boots on the ground" cannot and should not be the only response. That is why the Minister has, in the past few years, established the pilot local community safety partnerships, including one in Dublin’s north inner city. The partnerships bring together all service providers, including An Garda Síochána, the HSE, Tusla, the local authorities and others, with the community to work together to prioritise and find solutions to local issues.

As a commitment under the programme for Government, I established an expert forum on anti-social behaviour. The forum, which I chair, is developing measures which will address the factors that give rise to such behaviour and its impact on community morale and quality of life. The forum seeks to avoid duplicating other ongoing work by my Department. Three subgroups of the forum have been established to consider the specific issues of knife crime; the misuse of scramblers and quad bikes; and responses to anti-social behaviour impacts on housing complexes managed by approved housing bodies.

There is ongoing support by the Government for An Garda Síochána, including over €2 billion allocated under budget 2024. This is an increase of 23% against 2020 and demonstrates the Government’s commitment to ensuring that gardaí have the resources they need. This level of funding will support the recruitment of between 800 and 1,000 new Garda members and an additional 250 Garda staff. I also thank my colleague, the Minister for Public Expenditure, National Development Plan Delivery and Reform, Deputy Donohoe, for making provision in the budget to increase the Garda trainee allowance by 66%, from €184 per week to €305 per week, while recruits undergo their 33 initial weeks of training. This increase will take effect in January and will be backdated to budget 2020 so that those currently in training will also get the benefit. This will, I hope, support a continuation of the momentum in recruitment which we have seen over the past year.

A new recruitment campaign for the Garda Reserve will also take place in early 2024, the first such recruitment campaign since 2017.

With these measures, coupled with the continued roll-out of the new operating model with its focus on community engagement, I am confident that An Garda Síochána will continue to protect communities and combat crime and antisocial behaviour.

In summary, we are here today to deal with one element of our current licensing system that needs our attention, namely, the extension of the outdoor dining provisions, which have proven to be popular with the industry, local businesses and patrons.

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