Pat Breen (Clare, Fine Gael)
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Question 423: To ask the Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform his views on whether under the proposals of the liquor licensing consolidation Bill, the [i]ad interim[/i] transfer system for new owners of pubs will be replaced by a system whereby the new owner or tenant must immediately apply for a new licence to the courts, that they must give 14 days' notice and produce a tax clearance certificate, that such a transfer could be refused if an objection of an undue risk of either public nuisance or of a threat to public order or safety was upheld, that such a system would have the unintended consequences of severely constraining the freedom of publicans to transfer ownership of licensed premises; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [8100/06]

Michael McDowell (Dublin South East, Progressive Democrats)
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The position is that the temporary or ad interim transfer of a licence for the sale of intoxicating liquor for the unexpired period of the licence until the following 30 September is permitted under the Excise Licences Act 1825 and the Public House (Ireland) Act 1855 in certain circumstances, including the sale or assignment of the licensee's interest in the premises.

An application for an ad interim transfer is made to the District Court. The officer in charge of the Garda Síochána and the court clerk must be given notice of the application at least 48 hours before the hearing. Section 21 of the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2000 provides that an application to transfer a licence shall be refused unless it is established to the satisfaction of the court that the applicant is a fit person.

The arrangements for the ad interim transfer of licences are unsatisfactory because they do not permit sufficient consideration and scrutiny of applications. The 48-hour notice period is inadequate for the Garda to assess whether an applicant is a fit person to hold a licence or, if the applicant is a company, to trace the owners or directors of the company. It would also appear that the system may be open to abuses such as transfers of ownership designed to avoid prosecutions for breaches of the licensing laws.

The Government's legislation programme published on 25 January last makes provision for publication of a sale of alcohol Bill in 2006 which will update and streamline the law relating to the sale and consumption of alcohol. The Bill will repeal the Licensing Acts 1833 to 2004 as well as the Registration of Clubs Acts 1904 to 2004 and replace them with provisions more suited to modern conditions.

Arising from last year's consultation process on the draft Bill, I am aware of the concerns of vintners' organisations regarding the grounds of objection to the granting of a certificate for a new licence upon the sale or assignment of licensed premises. I will consider this issue further in the context of the detailed drafting of the Bill.