I move: "That the Bill be now read a Second Time."
The objective of this Bill is to ensure public safety at indoor events which of their nature are designed to be enjoyed by members of the public. The Bill gives full legal effect to the recommendations of the Hamilton committee on crowd control in respect of large scale indoor events. It will allow public authorities to prevent or control potentially unsafe concerts for the benefit of performers and the public alike. Currently there is no adequate mechanism in place to regulate public safety at indoor concerts and events. The Garda, health boards and fire authorities have limited powers prior to an event. This legislation when enacted will require promoters and organisers to demonstrate to the fire authority in advance of an event that they can run the event safely.
The Bill has the subsidiary purpose of strengthening the enforcement procedures of the Fire Services Act, 1981, as recently recommended by the report on the review of fire safety and fire services in Ireland. These proposed amendments, together with the enforcement provisions proposed in respect of the new indoor event licensing system, will enable a more immediate response to situations requiring enforcement action.
Like anyone else going out for an evening's entertainment, I would like to be assured when I go to a concert or a pub that my safety is a priority for the people in control of the premises and this Bill aims to do just that. The Bill when enacted will ensure that public safety and crowd management will be taken into account when an event is going through the new licensing process. When taken with the Planning and Development Act, 2000, and associated regulations on outdoor events, it will mean that we will have new and updated requirements covering public safety and crowd management issues for both outdoor and indoor events.
The licensing system will apply equally to both public and private events. It is intended to address the deficiencies in the existing licensing systems with regard to crowd safety and control. The role of fire authorities relates to fire related matters and there is a need to expand and strengthen it. Licensing under the Public Health Acts (Amendment) Act, 1890, only applied in the large cities where relevant by-laws have been implemented such as Dublin, Cork, Limerick and Waterford. Licences granted under the Public Dance Halls Act, as amended, do not require specific consideration of issues of crowd control and management, structural safety at the venue, and sanitary accommodation.
It may be appropriate to recall the background to the Bill. A committee chaired by Mr. Justice Hamilton examined the question of public safety and crowd control and reported in 1990. This committee examined in detail all safety aspects of entertainment such as concerts, and concluded that the primary responsibility for public safety should attach to the organisers and promoters of such events. The committee made a series of recommendations on public safety and crowd control, many of which have been implemented in the intervening years.
This Bill will fully implement the principle of promoter responsibility and also a key recommendation of the Hamilton report that "all major indoor pop concert promotions where the anticipated attendance exceeds 2,000 should be licensed on an individual basis". Indeed the Bill will go further and provide the power also to regulate events with less than 2,000 people.
The changing nature of events and venues has led to great concern about public safety issues, particularly where young people are involved. While I have not included the attendance number thresholds in the Bill, I intend to prescribe the appropriate thresholds in regulations to be made under the Act. This will allow flexibility in classifying events and venues within approved thresholds and it will reflect the advice of fire authorities in relation to the operation of the licensing system.
Following on the recommendations of the Hamilton report, two codes of practice, on safety at sports grounds and at outdoor pop concerts, were published by the Department of Education in 1996. A tragic death which occurred at a concert in the Point Theatre in the same year gave impetus to the development and putting in place of a third code of practice on safety at indoor concerts. An interdepartmental working group comprising representatives of my Department, together with the Departments of Education and Science, Health and Children, Justice, Equality and Law Reform, the Garda and Dublin Corporation was established to prepare the code.
The code of practice for safety at indoor concerts was published by my Department in 1998. The code reflects the general principles of safety and the organisational parameters set out in the other codes. All the codes reflect the recommendations of the report of the Hamilton committee, which examined public safety and crowd control. The code provides advice and guidance on the matters involved in the safe organisation and running of indoor concerts. The aim of the code is to help those involved in the organisation of indoor concerts to plan and manage such events safely. As indoor concerts take place in a wide variety of venues and cover a wide range of events, the guidance is set out in broad functional terms. The issue of crowd control is central to the safe running of these events and detailed guidelines are contained in the code. The code could not and did not address the issue of licensing the events to which it applies. Codes of practice will be put on a statutory basis under this Bill. Applicants must show compliance with such codes and fire authorities must have regard to relevant codes of practice when deciding on licence applications.
The new licensing system introduced in this Bill is based largely on the outdoor events provisions in Part XVI of the Planning and Development Act, 2000, and the Planning and Development (Licensing of Outdoor Events) Regulations, 2001, which introduced a new licensing regime for the control and proper management of largescale outdoor events. The new system will focus on crowd control and the levels of safety appropriate to an event or type of event. An event is defined as "a performance which takes place wholly or partly in a building and which is comprised of music, singing, dancing, displays of entertainment or any activity of like kind". The licensing system will be operated by fire authorities and applicants will have the right to appeal decisions to the District Court. There is also provision for the other front-line emergency services, the Garda, health boards and ambulance services, to be involved at the licensing stage and during follow-up inspections.
As I mentioned earlier, I propose to prescribe in regulations, at the same time as the commencement of this Bill, the attendance number threshold for indoor events and classes of indoor event. It is intended that indoor events and classes of event will be categorised in a table in the regulations. This will provide the flexibility to adjust the threshold set if changing circumstances so require.
I wish to discuss the main provisions of Parts 1 and 2 of the Bill. Sections 1, 2 and 3 are standard provisions dealing with the Bill's Short Title, commencement of the Act, interpretation and ministerial expenses. Section 2 defines an indoor event as "a performance which takes place wholly or mainly in a building and comprises music, singing, dancing, displays of entertainment or any similar activity and in respect of which members of the public may or may not attend". This will cover events run in private clubs and other events prescribed under regulations made under section 4.
Section 5 contains the key provisions of the Bill and provides that an indoor event will require a licence from the fire authority and that it will be an offence to organise or run such an event without a licence. Section 6 provides for the procedures to be followed by fire authorities when making a determination in relation to an application for a licence. A fire authority will be able to impose conditions in the licence and those involved in the event will be required to have regard to codes of practice such as the code of practice for safety at indoor concerts. Section 7 states that a licence in itself will not necessarily authorise the holding of an indoor event, as compliance with other relevant codes will still be required. Section 8 makes provision for those applying for a licence, aggrieved by a decision of the fire authority, to have the right of appeal to the District Court.
Section 9 makes provision for the issue of codes of practice and notice of the codes of practice shall be published in Iris Oifigiúil. Section 10 outlines the general duty of care of persons involved in organising or attending an event. Section 11 empowers fire authorities to serve a notice of cessation requiring those involved to stop an event or preparations for an event, remove any temporary structures, or restore any building to its original condition where a fire authority has reason to believe that an event is likely to occur without or in contravention of a licence. Section 12 provides powers of entry on to land and powers of inspection for authorised officers and members of the Garda Síochána. Section 13 is a standard provision for the limitation of civil proceedings against the Minister, fire authorities or authorised officers in the exercise of any functions required under this Bill. Section 14 empowers the District Court to revoke a licence on application by a fire authority where a licensee has been convicted of an offence under the Bill.
Section 15 deals with penalties and the prosecution of offences. Section 16 gives fire authorities the power to prosecute any summary offences committed in their functional areas. Section 17 provides that directors, officers or members of a corporate body may be liable when a corporate body commits an offence. Section 18 states that any fines imposed by a court in relation to offences under this Bill will accrue to the fire authority. Section 19 provides that fire authorities will be required to maintain a register of decisions and notices served and that the register will be open to the public for inspection during office hours. Section 20 makes provision for fire authorities to make joint arrangements to carry out the licensing function or to provide assistance to other fire authorities. Section 21 deals with the appointment and powers of authorised officers for the licensing function under Parts 1 and 2 of the Bill.
Section 22 is a standard provision in relation to the service of notices.
Part 3 of the Bill addresses more general amendments to the Fire Services Act, 1981, the basic legislation dealing with fire fighting and fire safety in Ireland. In the 21 years since the introduction of the Act, many changes have taken place in relation to fire safety and prevention. These changes warrant recognition in a legal context. I am aware that a number of the provisions, particularly the penalty provisions that were included in the 1981 Act, have proved to be less than effective in practice and are in need of reform. I am not proposing a fundamental review of the 1981 Act at this stage, but I intend to remedy difficulties in relation to the enforcement provisions of the Act which have been identified over the years, particularly following a legal challenge in the Supreme Court in 1993. The judgment in the 1993 case held that the Fire Services Act, 1981, contains no provision that gives a specific power to any person or body to bring and prosecute summary proceedings for offences under sections 18(2), 20 and 37 of the Act or regulations made under section 37 of the Act. The only route open to prosecute such offences is the lengthy process of prosecution through the Circuit Court on indictment. I intend in this Bill to put beyond doubt that a fire authority may take summary proceedings for an offence under the sections and regulations to which I have referred.
Part 3 of the Bill also addresses the issue of powers of inspection for fire authorities and fire authority inspectors under the Act. Provision is made for withdrawal of a fire safety notice. The definition of a building in the Act has been widened to include "part of a building" to deal with difficulties which have arisen in relation to issuing fire service notices to multiple occupancy buildings. Part 3 of the Bill also updates the penalty provisions of the 1981 Act to bring fines into line with current money values.
As regards the detailed provisions of Part 3, section 23 extends the definition of "building" in the Fire Services Act, 1981, to include parts of buildings, structures or erections, thus providing the fire authorities with the flexibility to serve notices on parts of buildings. Sections 24 and 25 copperfasten the power of fire authorities to prosecute offences summarily and the sections also update the penalty provisions of the Fire Services Act, 1981. Section 26 clarifies section 18(2) of the Fire Services Act, 1981. It puts beyond doubt the duty of persons in control to make adequate provision for the safety of persons on the premises regardless of whether an outbreak of fire has actually occurred. This section also strengthens the status of advice given by a fire authority and its inspection powers. It underpins an extended range of options, including the issuing of a warning that a fire authority could use in dealing with "persons in control".
Section 27 makes provision for the issue of codes of practice and provides that notice of the codes of practice shall be published in Iris Oifigiúil. Section 28 makes statutory provision for the withdrawal of fire safety notices. Up to now there was no provision in the Fire Services Act to enable a fire authority to withdraw a notice once it had issued in relation to premises. This gave rise to considerable conveyancing difficulties for these premises. Section 29 updates provisions governing the service of notices. I am sure that the House will agree that the enactment of this legislation should be a priority to ensure that audiences attending large indoor events can rest assured that there is a crowd control and safety plan in place for their protection to ensure their safety.
I commend the Bill to the House and look forward to a constructive debate on its various provisions.