Nightclub owners are lobbying the Government to change what they claim are antiquated "ballroom" laws which, they say, are preventing the industry's development and putting it out of step with other EU countries.
The newly-formed Dublin Nightclub Association (DNCA), including the owners of Lillie's Bordello, Club M and Renards, have submitted a proposal to the Oireachtas joint committee which has been examining the licensing laws for more than two years.
"Nightclubs are one of the fastest growing sectors in the Irish leisure industry. In Dublin, they contribute about £65 million to the economy every year," said Mr John Reynolds, DNCA chairman and owner of The Pod and The Red Box nightclubs. He said that up to 2,000 people were employed in the industry in Dublin which saw "a throughput" of seven million people, many of them tourists.
"We feel we are a very important element in the tourism mix which has catapulted this city to being one of the most hip in Europe," he added.
The association wants the law simplified so that a club owner with a publican's licence, and planning permission, public liability insurance and a fire certificate for a nightclub would get a licence.
The current legislation is "1998's version of supper dances", disallowing drink being served after midnight on Saturdays, while, under the dance licence, a meal has to be provided to clubbers while they are in full swing.
"How they operate at the moment is through a kind of mish mash of four elements a publican's licence, a full restaurant licence, a dance licence and a special exemption order," he said.
The DNCA also wants the "the differentiation" between pubs and clubs maintained, so that if pub hours are extended, club hours would be increased correspondingly.
Mr Reynolds, who is also developing a nightclub in Powerscourt Townhouse in Dublin's city centre added that the potential for growth for this sector was being stifled.
"It is a thriving industry that is not regarded as an industry. It employs a lot of people; it has created a buzz in this city," he added.
