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THERE IS NO legal bar to publicans obtaining late night licence extensions allowing them to serve drinks into the early hours on Good Friday, the President of the Circuit Court, Mr Justice Raymond Groarke, has ruled.
A judge in the Dublin District court had refused to grant a Good Friday late bar extension to the Red Cow Inn on the Naas Road, Dublin, which meant a huge back-up in similar applications pending an appeal to the Circuit Court.
The appeal was allowed today by Judge Groarke which frees publicans to obtain bar extensions in cases where there is no objection by the State authorities, including the Garda Siochana, and where all necessary legal proofs are in order.
Barrister Dorothy Collins, counsel for the Red Cow Inn, told the Circuit Civil Court that the legislation had been amended this year deleting the two words Good Friday from the 1927 Licencing Act.
“The government’s decision means that from now on Good Friday will be treated as an ordinary day in the licencing legislation under which bar extension application may be made to the District Court,” Collins said.
She said the requirement for such an application was that there has to be a special occasion such as a dance and the Red Cow and other public premises seeking extensions do hold dances.
She said that more than 40 applications before the District Court had been adjourned following the decision of the Court on Wednesday refusing a Special Exemption Order to the Red Cow.
Collins told the court there had been no objection by the gardaí to the running of the event in the Red Cow. The amended legislation meant that Good Friday shall be treated under the licencing laws the same as any other day of the week.
Judge Groarke said the appeal before him arose in the context of recent changes in the licencing legislation providing that Good Friday should now be treated as an ordinary licencing day in the context of the law.
He said there were no objections on behalf of the State and gardaí and he had been assured by Constance Cassidy SC, who appeared for a number of other publicans, that the legal proofs in each of the cases were in order.
“I can assume that all of the necessary proofs are in order and I allow the appeal in each case and grant the extensions sought,” Judge Groarke said.
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Common sense prevails
@David Craddock:
More like the drinks lobby prevails
@David Craddock: The Irish stereotype prevails.
Most of the pubs in my area are staying closed for Good Friday
@Zossima: Nobody is forcing you to drink alcohol on good friday & adults don’t like being forced not to if they so wish.
@David Craddock: not really, common sense would say 1 day out of 363 per annum should be OK to rest from a poison that has destroyed this country. Common sense would say fine let them open on good Friday but now every bar in the country wants a late licence as well. This is not common sense prevailing this is knee her reacting because we’re still not over all the oppression. We still need to be so ‘free’ that we not only kill ourselves but destroy the place on anyone else while we’re at it.
@Phil Swan: Yawn
@Phil Swan: where do you start with that sort of nonsense. Go back to the Iona institute and talk about your magic potions and ghosts. This world is not for you.
@Chris Martin: Please define the Irish stereotype in your own words? Actually maybe first read the constitution and/or a book on human rights?? Also not everyone drinks alcohol.
Long overdue. Freedom of choice wins!
@Ben Dawkins: hope to see you making the same comment in May.
Good. Slowly but surely the jackboot of the Catholic church is being taken off the necks of the Irish people. And not before time…..
@The Risen:
Anyone would think that up to now it was not possible to get a drink on Good Friday . We will all be spared the spectacle of all the moran’s queuing up the day before at off licenses as if their life depended on having a drink on Good Friday.
Recently a Cork Rugby club had to manage a bus load of underage teenagers arriving at a no alcohol Disco blind drunk and at least two of them would have lost their lives if it was for the rapid medical attention they received on the spot. The blame for the state that these teenagers were in was laid fair and square at the door of the parents.
@Aine O Connor: what does underage drinking have to do with Good Friday?
@EvieXVI:
The Culture of excessive drinking alcohol in this country and the bad example shown by adults.
@Aine O Connor: but how does arbitrarily banning the sale of alcohol on one day a year help?
@Aine O Connor: Missing the point Aine. This move further separates church and state by not allowing the dogma of a single faith to dictate our licencing laws.
@Aine O Connor: *morons
@The Risen:
The Church was not stopping you from drinking the other 364 days in the year and anyone who wanted to drink on GF could easily do so by stocking up the day before.
@EvieXVI: Not much help but it would not do anyone any harm to abstain from alcohol occasionally to give good example.
@Aine O Connor: The church is not stopping me drinking on good Friday regardless. Now, I know you’re not stupid, so I’ll take it you are purposely ignoring my point about catholic dogma influencing our laws, licencing or otherwise.
@Aine O Connor: people abstain all the time Aine. I wasn’t drinking last night. In fact I don’t drink most nights.
Being told, by the state, that I can’t have a drink because of religion is a different thing.
How about we scrap good Friday and hold a national “drink awareness” week where everyone is encourage not to drink and the pubs aren’t issued late licenses?
Or is it really more about religion?
@Aine O Connor: no one is being forced to drink!
@The Risen: Please identify what you consider to be “the jackboot of the Catholic Church ” . An illiterate parasite on the States welfare system like you would obviously have a problem in answering that . Anyway let them all off to get paralysed by alcohol and clog up our hospitals .
This had never been a religious issue , but a responsible organisation trying to get some sense in to society. In the meantime park your bigotry !
@The Risen: Yaawwwnnn
Bye Bye Good Friday parties best ones every year and everyone turns up on time !!
Why does everyone still call it good friday? Its not like anyone believes in that nonsense anymore
@paddy:
Speak for yourself.
@paddy: Unfortunately Paddy, for as long as churches are allowed to indoctrinate our children or as long as people are scared of death being the end, there will be organised religion of some description.
@paddy: should we stop calling march 17th Paddies day and maybe even cancell Christmas as Well?
@Brian Kenny: I’m atheist and happily celebrate both Paddies Day and Christmas every year. Good Friday isn’t cancelled you know, you will still be able to attend mass and so on.
@paddy: It will be a Good Friday from now on as we commemorate one of the last nails being driven through the hands of the church. Next it has to be schools.
@Beyond Belief: The point is, will you stop calling them by their names; St Patrick’s (Paddy’s) day and Christmas day?
@Patrick J. O’Rourke: you really are an absolute bird brain
@Johnny Bellew: Of course, because that’s what the days are best known as. Just because I do not celebrate the religious element does not mean that I cannot get involved in the festivities.
* Of course not. (Misread your post.)
@John Egan: so that’s the limit of your intellect and debating talents to just deliver insults? The organisation in question that has had control for too long left me with scars on my body and mind. I celebrate even the smallest example of them losing power.
@Patrick J. O’Rourke: You are 100 percent correct. That we still give them unquestioning access to our kids in public schools is obscene.
@paddy: Ah Paddy, paddy paddy – you really show huge ignorance about the significance of Good Friday all over the world.
For Christians – Catholics, Orthodox and Protestant Churches etc., it is called Good Friday, in the sense of being ‘Pious’ Friday. It is the only day in the year when Mass is not celebrated by Catholics and Orthodox Churches; it is day of mourning for the death of Jesus Christ.
In Germany, it is Kar-Freitag (Mourning Friday) and dancing and horse racing are prohibited on Good Friday (as it was in the UK until 2014).
In many countries, it is a Public Holiday but it is not a Holiday in Ireland, despite popular misbelief. However, most businesses in Rep of Ireland close about lunchtime to allow staff, managers and business owners to attend Good Friday Church ceremonies. In Nth Ireland, most businesses remain closed until 5pm, ’til after Good Friday Church ceremonies.
For Muslims it is called a day of Ashura (mourning). Islam believes the three great Prophets of Islam (apart from Mohammed) were ‘saved’ on a day of Ashura – Moses from the Egyptians, Abraham from the furnace Fire of Nimrod, and Jesus from the Cross (they do not believe Jesus died on the Cross but was ‘saved’ from it. His Resurrection on the 3rd day (Easter for Christians) is celebrated as the day of resuscitation). Every Friday is the Holy Day in Islam in recognition of Christ’s “saving”.
In Judaism, Yom-Kippur, the ‘Day of Atonement’ (of Penance), Jews also incorporate the meaning of Good Friday in their own way of beliefs, if not actually on Good Friday itself. For Muslims, Ashura is their equivalent to the Judaic Yom Kippur and Christian Good (Pious) Friday.
This clealy shows that the meaning of Christianity’s “Good Friday” is revered by all the millions of members of the three Abrahamic faiths – certainly “not like anyone believes in that nonsense anymore”, as you ignorantly say.
@Patrick J. O’Rourke: I’m sorry for what may have happened to you, but really I don’t understanding bashing a whole religion, bad people are everywhere religion or not so saying that the Catholic Church has a firm grip on everything here in this country is stupid. You’re mistaken it for the banks and politicians.
@Beyond Belief:
So you’re not an true Atheist then?
@Jengis O’Can:
Great post
@Beyond Belief: Yaaawwwnnnn
@Beyond Belief: I thought atheists shit themselves at the thought of death?, as far indoctrination is concerned, isn’t that in the majority of cases the decision of the parents to raise their child in a particular faith? It done me the world of good anyway. God bless you brother ;)
The next step is to get rid of the ridiculous law that prohibits the sale of alcohol until 10.30am on weekdays and 12.30pm on Sunday. What in the name of Jesus does that achieve?
@Presuming Ed: Alcoholics need to get a bit of grub into their belly before going to the off licence at 10.30am. They can’t be drinking on an empty stomach, tut tut. As you are probably aware, they usually wake up at around 9am so that extra hour or so waiting around to have a drink is breakfast time. For this logical and pragmatic reason, the gov must not allow early morning access to alcohol :D
Forcing off licences to close at 10pm was an excellent move by the gov because it stops people nipping to the offo too late at night and drinking into the wee hours. As you are probably aware, some people get carried away with themselves if they buy alcohol late at night for home consumption and end up with a nasty hangover in work the following morning. For this logical and pragmatic reason, off licenses must not be allowed to open any later than 10pm :D
@Super Ted: Who cares? If someone wants to buy their drink whenever then let them do it & let them get it where ever they can get it & if you don’t like it, you don’t have to do it so why do you care is someone else does or when they do it? It’s not your problem.
@Super Ted: You call that logic. Get over yourself. Anyone with an addiction doesn’t care what time of the day it is. They will go to any length to feed that addiction. My mother is an alcoholic she doesn’t rely on a clock to get what she wants!
Good, It should of been done away with 20 years ago. All the aul wans will be nattering away about this for months now!!! ;-)
@name cannot be blank: __ They’ll be too busy nattering away about people using should of instead of should have to be nattering about anything else.
I wonder how many pubs are in JUDGE GROAKE’S family. Very quick to answer since the opposing judge only ruled Wednesday. Just shows things can be done very quickly around here.
@Jeff Harris: Yeah, same as loads of court judgements are delivered by innebriated people supposed to be as sober a judge.
Should’ve been done years ago but better late than never.
Well now we have more drunk vandals coming out causing damage to people’s property an extra day and assaults and prob Dui…well done to the government….
@Tony Mc Donald: did u actually think that people didnt drink on Good Friday. Some of the best parties I was ever at were on Good Friday, have you ever seen the queues in Tesco on holy Thursday?.
But I still want the day off work. I’m religious in that way
Is it just people in the pub trade losing their good friday day off or do the rest of us need to worry the precedent could be extended?
@Christian Taylor: what day off? It’s not a public holiday….
@Christian Taylor: Good Friday is, and always was a working day for most of us, it’s not a bank holiday
@Larissa Caroline Nikolaus: it’s a working day for me legally, but the company closes forcing me to use a day from my annual leave.
@Larissa Caroline Nikolaus: It is not a Public Holiday in Ireland but it is in many other countries.
Most businesses in Rep of Ireland close about lunchtime to allow staff, managers and business owners to attend Good Friday Church ceremonies.
In Nth Ireland, most businesses remain closed until 5pm, ’til after Good Friday Church ceremonies.
And from that day forth it became known as Great Friday..
Just shows the stupidity of this country and government. Let’s all ban alcohol advertisements and cheap alcohol but open up for an extra day.
@thatsnotme:
one day doesn’t make a difference one way or the other, the point is that it was an archaic law based on some make believe bs story about some lad from the Middle East.
Next get rid of the stupid blasphemy laws.
@name cannot be blank: please save me the contradicting bullish!t like a good lad
My local is celebrating with a cocktail special, half price Rusty Nails!
What’s the point of posting a comment when you won’t print same !
Bloody pathetic
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