Curfew change for children in pubs in summer

Children under the age of 18 will be allowed into licensed premises for an extra hour at night during the summer months, the Minister for Justice said, as the 9 p.m. curfew is relaxed.

The curfew has now been extended until 10 p.m. and Mr McDowell told the Dáil he was giving a "liberal view" of summer from May 1st to the end of September, because he accepted that the earlier deadline could be "too tough" on some occasions during that period.

The Minister had accepted an amendment from Fine Gael's Justice spokesman, Mr Jim O'Keeffe, during a debate on the emergency Intoxicating Liquor Bill, which was rushed through all stages in the Dáil yesterday to allow under-18s attend alcohol-free events, such as discos in licensed premises.

Mr O'Keeffe originally suggested that the curfew be extended to 10.30 p.m. but Mr McDowell said if he amended it to 10 p.m. he could accept it.

"I have been conscious of the fact that the 9 p.m. limit in case of people coming off boats on the Shannon or from beaches in rural Ireland in summer time is too tough on occasions", he said.

The Minister had faced criticism on the introduction of the Bill and on rushing it through.

He was also taunted about being wrong in his interpretation of the existing legislation, passed last year, which stated that so long as a bar was closed, children could enter a licensed premises after 9 p.m. for certain events.

The DPP is bringing a case to the High Court to clarify the legislation and the new legislation will make that case redundant.

But Mr McDowell believes he was correct in his interpretation.

Apologising for the need to bring the Bill in a hurry, the Minister argued he had been doing it to prevent organisations that hold alcohol-free events from being prosecuted.

"If one held a disco or dance in the local GAA club and there was a bar in the corner with the shutters down, everyone was committing an offence," was the interpretation of the Office of the DPP, he had been told.

When he brought his major consolidation Bill on all aspects of licensing legislation to the Cabinet, he was informed that "it was intended to bring prosecutions in all such cases in the future".

"I am determined to stop prosecutions commencing in cases where GAA clubs allow children to use the main halls of their clubs, even for judo practice, because there is a bar, with its shutters up, situated therein. " He pointed out that the District Court had rejected two or three such cases brought by the DPP.

Mr O'Keeffe said that "rushed legislation is bad law and in an effort to clear one problem it may cause another. It is a sticking plaster approach and I do not commend it".

Labour's spokesman, Mr Joe Costello, said "it appears the only reason for the legislation's introduction is to protect ourselves against possible court cases".

Sinn Féin's spokesman hit out at gardaí on the issue. "Gardaí in Dublin 4 have nothing better to do than to walk from Donnybrook Garda Station to try to prosecute Old Wesley. If such gardaí have nothing better to do, they should go to Ballyfermot or other locations where I guarantee their time would be well spent."