By Brian Allison, local government reporter

A DUNDEE BAR had its public house licence renewal application unanimously refused by the licensing board yesterday.

The decision was taken after a hearing at which the board held that licensees Gunn Hotels and Inns Ltd and Andrew Bisset, were no longer fit and proper to hold a licence for Laings Bar in Roseangle.

Board members expressed horror at conditions in the premises both during their own visits and detailed in inspection reports by environmental health officers.

The premises do not have to close immediately. There is a 21-day period for the board to provide written reasons for its decision and then a further 14 days in which the applicants can lodge an appeal.

City council food safety and health and safety manager Ron Dunn told the board that the premises had been inspected on June 9 and were found not to meet acceptable standards.

Mr Dunn said 30 contraventions included a pest problem with rats and mice. He was of the opinion that, if the problem was not treated, an Emergency Prohibition Notice (EPN) would have to be served, closing the premises with immediate effect.

However, by the following day the problem had been addressed, removing the need for an EPN.

Mr Dunn said there had been a “blatant disregard” for food safety and public health through the applicants’ failure to respond to recommendations made by a pest control company.

He said another inspection had been carried out in November when 23 contraventions were found. It was his opinion that the business had not moved on significantly since June. Mr Dunn said the fact that serious problems had arisen in the first place showed there had been a failure to manage the premises properly.

An agent for the applicants accepted there had been “shortcomings and failings” in administrative procedures at Laings, caused by the rapid growth of the group which owned the premises.

But there were now comprehensive systems and procedures in place to ensure there was no repeat of the situation.

The agent said almost all the issues highlighted in the June inspection had been addressed by the time of the November inspection, which indicated that the applicants had taken the matter seriously. He submitted that the systems and procedures now in place demonstrated that the applicants were fit and proper to hold a licence.

Councillor Joe Fitzpatrick spoke of his “horror, shock and disgust” when he visited in January and found part of the floor covered in vegetable oil, cracked tiles and grubby walls. Board chairman Neil Powrie said he had been on the same visit and was horrified by what he saw, which included dirty optics and mess behind the bar.

Moving that the applicants were not fit and proper to hold a licence Mr Powrie said the issue was not what procedures were in place now but the way the premises had been before. He said the premises should never have been allowed to get into the state there were in and he was satisfied that public health and safety had been compromised.