HL Deb 25 May 1978 vol 392 cc1051-3

11.31 a.m.

Lord MELCHETT rose to move, That the draft Licensing (Northern Ireland)Order 1978, laid before the House on 17th May, be approved. The noble Lord said: My Lords, the purpose of this order is to make certain minor but important amendments to the Licensing Act (Northern Ireland) 1971. The changes are needed largely because of terrorist activities directed against licensed hotels. I think that this is the only order with which we are dealing today which does not simply extend existing legislation in Great Britain to Northern Ireland. But it makes only a small change in the existing licensing laws in Northern Ireland.

A hotel that suffers bomb damage is usually so extensively affected that all normal business has to be discontinued or severely curtailed. However, if the residential part of the hotel has been severely damaged, or totally destroyed, the lack of residential accommodation prevents such hotels from obtaining a certificate of registration with the Northern Ireland Tourist Board as an approved and fully operational hotel. Such a certificate is a statutory prerequisite for the renewal of an hotel liquor licence. So a hotel that is damaged may in many cases not only lose most of its custom but also the right to renew its licence until the residential accommodation is rebuilt and a Tourist Board certificate can then be obtained.

This order will enable the licensing courts to continue, where necessary, to grant renewals of liquor licences attached to licensed hotels which in recent years have suffered damage from bomb attacks. Where the hotel is still partially operative then the order would enable the licensing courts to continue, for a reasonable period, to renew the liquor licence, subject to certain conditions. To encourage hoteliers to resume full hotel operation as soon as possible, only two renewals can be granted, and an applicant for a third renewal would have to satisfy the court that there were reasonable grounds for the delay in reopening. The order will also ensure that certain rights and privileges attaching to especially old licensed premises are protected.

The limited proposals in this order are designed to help a part of the Northern Ireland economy which has been singled out for extensive attacks in recent years. It is vital for us to support the hotel industry in Northern Ireland to maintain normal hotel services for those living in and those visiting Northern Ireland today and also to encourage individual hoteliers and the industry in general to plan and build for the future. I beg to move.

Moved, That the draft Licensing (Northern Ireland) Order 1978, laid before the House on 17th May, be approved.—(Lord Melchett.)

Viscount LONG

My Lords, I was not going to say anything about this order, but I am most grateful to the noble Lord, Lord Melchett, for explaining it to us. It is very important indeed that this order should go forward in order to protect the hotels and the tourist trade as a whole in Northern Ireland. I believe that we all welcome this new order, which is extremely important to the employment of people and to the tourist trade as a whole.

Lord HAMPTON

My Lords, in supporting this order, I should like to say that we on these Benches think that this is an important order and to join with the noble Lord, Lord Brockway, in expressing our appreciation of what the noble Lord, Lord Melchett, is doing in Northern Ireland.

On Question, Motion agreed to.