Liquor Licence Applications

Dáil Éireann Debate, Wednesday - 17 April 2013

Wednesday, 17 April 2013

Questions (89)

Michelle Mulherin

Question:

89. Deputy Michelle Mulherin asked the Minister for Finance further to Parliamentary Question No. 84 of 6 March 2013, wherein he pointed out that the Revenue Commissioners may only grant a liquor licence to a person when that person has presented a Court Certificate to them within twelve months of the date it was issued by the Revenue Commissioners, the reason they are now refusing to issue a liquor licence to persons (details supplied) in County Mayo who furnished an original current Court Certificate in November 2012 and instead are considering other matters than those provided for pursuant to Section 39 of the Intoxicating Liquor Act 2000 where the applicant has presented the Court Certificate in accordance with the statutory provisions; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [17808/13]

Written answers

Minister for Finance

I am informed by the Revenue Commissioners that the procedure following the grant of a Licence by Court Order is for the Licensee to obtain a Court Certificate from the Court Office. This Court Certificate must be submitted to the Revenue Commissioners, within 12 months of the date on which it was issued. The Revenue Commissioners will then issue the Licence, subject to tax clearance being in place. In the case in question, the Licence lapsed on the 30th September 2001 and was not renewed. A subsequent application to the Courts in 2005 resulted in the issue of a draft Court Order dated 5th July 2005. This Court Order was presented to the Revenue Commissioners in May 2006. A Licence dated 24th May 2006 issued (albeit erroneously in the absence of a Court Certificate) with an expiry date of 30th September 2006. This Licence was not subsequently renewed and lapsed again on the 1st October 2007. Trading ceased when the premises was subsequently closed by An Garda Síochána.

Subsequent to this, the applicant made a request to the Court Service for the Court Certificate relating to the 2005 Court Order. A Court Certificate, dated the 5th July 2005, stamped by the Circuit Court office on the 18th April 2012, was received by Revenue on 9th May 2012 with a request to issue a Licence.

The position is that the original Court Order dated 5th July 2005 was acted upon, on the 24th May 2006 and is deemed “spent”. The request for a Licence was therefore refused on this basis.

Question No. 90 answered with Question No. 87.