The Programme for Government commits to ‘modernising our licensing laws and application processes’ and the Justice Plan 2021 commits to reviewing and modernising alcohol licensing. In addition, the issue of outdated alcohol licensing legislation was a key challenge identified by stakeholders in the recently published report of the Night-Time Economy Taskforce.

Therefore, the Minister intends to modernise alcohol licensing laws through the Sale of Alcohol Bill. The existing laws governing sale and regulation of alcohol in Ireland have been rooted in principles of the transparent regulation and administration of licensing, the importance of public health and the maintenance of public order. These principles will underpin this reform process.