SCHOOL EDITION 29 MAY 2024 - Flipbook - Page 21
IN ASSOCIATION WITH
Business INsight
WEDNESDAY JANUARY 22 2020
business@irishnews.com
www.irishnews.com
Hospitality Ulster
welcomes Hargey
licensing pledge
RYAN McALEER
r.mcaleer@irishnews.com
D
RINKS body Hospitality Ulster has welcomed
comments
from
Communities
Minister Deirdre Hargey that
she is ready to ‘push the button’
on licensing reform in the north.
The Sinn Féin minister revealed that her department is
actively mulling over 1,500 responses to the latest consultation on reform, which closed on
December 6.
Northern Ireland’s drinks sector has long labelled the current
licensing legislation as archaic.
Easter opening hours in particular have been a bugbear for
pubs around the north.
Prior to the collapse of Stormont in 2017, the Department
for Communities and its predecessor the Department for
Social Development had been
headed by DUP ministers since
2011.
Ms Hargey said she will move
on the issue “urgently”, hinting
REFORM PLANS: Deirdre
Hargey and Colin Neill
that there could be some legislative movement by Easter, which
falls on April 12.
“I think everyone recognises
that we need a fresh look at this.
Things do need to change,” she
told the BBC.
“There’s a commitment within
the New Decade, New Approach
deal to do that.
“As the minister responsible,
I’m keen to engage with the sector and indeed with those responding and move forward as
soon as possible.”
Hospitality Ulster chief executive Colin Neill said it is now
more important than ever for
the reformed executive to move
on licensing reform.
“The hospitality industry is
working in an anti-business environment and is continually
facing rising costs with the highest business rates in the UK, the
second highest rate of hospitality VAT in Europe and ever increasing wage bill,” he said.
“This is simply unsustainable. These essential reforms will
have a positive impact on open-
“Modernisation of
our outdated liquor
licensing legislation is
long overdue”
Colin Neill
ing times during key holiday periods such as Easter, giving businesses in the sector the tools to
run profitably and to allow them
to add further to the economy.
“Modernisation of our outdated liquor licensing legislation is
long overdue, and it must be addressed as an urgent priority.”
21
DEAL: Openreach engineer
Adrian Hamilton, Mairead
Meyer, Ulster Rugby chief
executive Jonny Petrie and
Openreach engineer Jenny
McLernon
260,000 homes and firms can
connect to full-fibre broadband
MORE than 260,000
homes and businesses
in the north can now
enjoy the benefits of
new ultra-fast, ultrareliable internet access
as a result of the rollout
of future-proof fibreto-the-premises (FTTP)
broadband technology,
according to Openreach,
the engineering team that
builds, maintains and
manages the network.
This milestone means
nearly 30 per cent of
premises now have
access to faster full-fibre
broadband, keeping
Openreach on track to
ensure almost 40 per cent
of premises are fully fibre
enabled by the end of
March.
This year alone, 187,000
premises have been
included in the regionwide build programme.
In the Belfast area 120,000
premises can now connect
to Openreach full-fibre
broadband, which is more
than 60 per cent of homes
and businesses.
With speeds available
of up to 1 gbps – enough
bandwidth for a family of
four to all stream ultra HD
or 4k quality movies or TV
simultaneously, without
waiting or buffering –
these upgraded fibre
connections are helping to
ensure Northern Ireland
has a reliable, futureproof and dependable
service that will be a
platform for economic
growth in the north.
Openreach’s regional
director Mairead Meyer
said: “We’re building a
network that delivers
more than just speed.
“Full-fibre broadband will
provide Northern Ireland
with a future-proof and
consistent service that
will help renew towns
and communities across
the region and supports
its position as a leading
digital economy.”
Openreach has also
unveiled its biggest ever
marketing campaign in
the north.
It celebrates the
company’s new fouryear sponsorship deal
with Ulster Rugby and
highlights the role it and
its 750-strong team play
in building a network that
connects.