A few weeks ago, I wrote an opinion piece highlighting how Northern Ireland’s antiquated pub licensing system is damaging the social fabric of our communities. Pubs are closing not because they’re financially unviable, but because a critical shortage of licenses has turned the limited number that exist into highly sought-after commodities for operators opening venues in more profitable locations or for supermarket chains.
Northern Ireland currently operates with just 1,113 pub licenses and 678 off-licenses. For the past century, we’ve maintained a “surrender principle”—meaning that for every new pub or off-license that opens, an existing one must close.
The Department for Communities has long recognized this as a major problem. Communities Minister Gordon Lyons’ Department commissioned the University of Stirling to undertake an independent review of the current licensing system and propose reforms. However, the recommended reforms were ultimately rejected following an extensive lobbying campaign by major industry players seeking to restrict new market entrants and preserve the status quo.
A Newry Case Study
A recent pub closure in Newry demonstrates how our licensing system is destroying the heritage and social fabric of Northern Ireland’s communities.
Jean Crozier’s pub was a small establishment, and its closure by itself is not a major news story, but it is symbolic as it was a local institution—one of the few pubs in Newry with a Protestant heritage which was frequented by both communities and its closure is a direct result of our antiquated not fit for purpose, pub licencing system.
The pub was originally purchased by Jim and Lily Wilson in March 1942 and it remained in the Wilson/Crozier family for 83 years, passing down through the generations.
The pub was noted for its traditional character, featuring original wood paneling and classic bar fittings. CAMRA recognized it as having a historic interior.
Following Jean Crozier’s death, her daughter Daphne Lockhart took over as licensee in 2015, running the bar with assistance from her sisters Pauline Moore and Sandra Crozier. In October 2023, the family sold the pub to a local businessman, ending 83 years of family ownership.
Just before Christmas 2025, it was sold again—this time to a buyer who needed the license for a pub they plan to open in a different Northern Ireland town. The pub closed before Christmas and I have been advised that it will not reopen as the licence has already been transferred.
The Real Issue
This closure exemplifies a licensing policy that is actively ripping out the cultural heart of our communities as demand for pub licenses intensifies and smaller, less profitable venues are shuttered.
The new owner cannot be blamed—they’re simply operating within the rules set by our politicians. This is the only method available to them for securing a license, and I wish them well in their endeavours.
However, the wider implications are stark. When Lidl recently announced the opening of three new supermarkets across Northern Ireland—a positive development—the untold story is that three pubs or off-licenses will now have to close to enable these plans.
A Call to Action
The Department for Communities must urgently revisit pub licensing reform. There are “Jean Croziers” scattered across Northern Ireland’s villages and towns and these pubs are the bedrock of their local communities’ social fabric and all of these establishments are now at risk of closure given the pub licenses that enables these pubs to operate, can be put to more profitable use elsewhere.
In the above example, Gordon Lyons misguided policies are effectively destroying the very communities, culture and heritage his Department should be protecting.
Patrick Murdock is a dual qualified Chartered Surveyor and qualified Tax Advisor original from and currently in based Newry. An independent free thinking liberal at heart, prior to establishing his own specialist consultancy, Patrick has built a twenty year career working for a number of global advisory firms and continues to work across markets in the construction, property and final services industries and has considerable experience and practical knowledge of working day today in the UK, Northern Ireland and ROI markets.
He is also Cofounder and operator – The Hub, Newry.
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