News

Last week was difficult for the bar Mou Very. The local watering hole for sweaty hipsters faced a public hearing last Wednesday after failing to meet the liquor licensing requirements.

Mou Very was originally granted a temporary licence in February in order to allow the bar to operate while an application for a permanent licence was considered. However, owner Madeleine McCoy continued to apply for temporary licences rather than a permanent one. The third time this happened, police recommended that the application be rejected.

Breaches of legal requirements and the lack of a duty manager on site led to a public hearing being organised to debate renewing the bar’s liquor licence.

According to the Sale of Liquor Act 1989 and the new Sale and Supply of Alcohol Act 2012, a certified manager is required on site to ensure compliance with the Acts’ requirements, particularly those regarding the sale of alcohol to minors and intoxicated persons. When asked to comment, McCoy responded that the manager’s certificate is “just a piece of paper.”

However, the DCC's liquor licensing project officer, Kevin Mechen, stressed the importance of having a manager on site. “With an alcohol licence comes a lot of responsibility, so in the process of gaining a manager’s certificate, one must successfully complete a course covering the alcohol-related legislation and host responsibility.”

The bar was also found to be in breach of the Act in other respects. A compliance check by the police revealed that the bar was not selling adequate food. McCoy argued that such requirements were unreasonable as, given the size of the bar, the kitchen could not cope with such demand, but this only exacerbated police concern over her suitability for a licence.

When the day of the hearing arrived, however, it was announced that the meeting had been cancelled. Mechen informed Critic that “the company has made sufficient changes to the company structure to satisfy the Police and Licensing instructor to negate the need for the hearing.

“They [Mou Very] will be consulting with the Police and licensing inspector and then will get a new temporary authority.” This will be followed by the bar getting a licence of its own.