Member's statement: Dobbins Inn: Closure
Member's statement by Mr John Stewart on .
- MLA
- Mr John Stewart
- Party at the time
- Ulster Unionist Party
- Date
- 7 September 2026
- Type
- Member's statement
- Business
- Members' Statements
- Heading
- Dobbins Inn: Closure
- Assembly identifier
- Official Report component 5669632
Read the official Assembly record
Text
Over the summer, Carrickfergus suffered the latest of a series of blows to our high street with the announcement from the owners of Dobbins Inn that that historic business will close later this month. That is a huge blow not only to Carrickfergus High Street but to tourism and hospitality across the town and, indeed, in east Antrim more generally. For those who do not know, Dobbins is much more than simply another business. It dates back to 1530 and is an almost 500-year-old historic hotel, bar and restaurant, and is a unique tourism offering in Carrickfergus.
The Fallis family has run Dobbins Inn since 1978 and, for almost half a century, has dedicated itself to providing hospitality to our town and promoting Carrickfergus as a place to visit. I thank the family for all its efforts. It is desperately sad that we have reached this point — the town is shaken by it — but the closure is not due to any lack of effort from the owners or their hard-working staff. It is because the trading conditions facing hospitality, retail and town-centre businesses have become increasingly difficult and, for many, simply unviable. At every level, government needs to act. At Westminster, the Government must end the enormous tax burden on hospitality. The sector has rightly called for lower VAT, and the increased cost of employing people through National Insurance and other pressures must be recognised. Government cannot continue to increase the cost of doing business and then wonder why businesses fail. At Stormont, we need a fundamental business reform of the rates system. The Finance Minister must recognise that hospitality and town-centre businesses, in particular, are in a precarious position. Rates have to reflect economic reality rather than becoming another weight around the necks of businesses that are already struggling with energy costs, wages, supply costs and taxation. We have also had the high street task force: we need to see a "Town centre first" approach from it. I call on the Executive to re-establish that as quickly as possible. Our councils also need to play their role. Local government reform promised greater efficiency and services at better cost, yet, year after year, we have seen business rates continue to rise and services being reduced: that is simply unacceptable. Councils have power in economic development, regeneration and town-centre management. They need to use those powers to improve public realm, address dereliction and support events and initiatives that increase footfall. They also need to look seriously at parking and accessibility and at how we make our high streets an attractive place to invest and do business. The fundamental economic responsibility of government at every level is to create the conditions in which businesses can flourish and investment can take place, but, for too many, the opposite is happening. I sincerely thank Derek, Maureen, Kirsty and the team at Dobbins for everything that they have contributed to Carrickfergus. I wish them the best and hope that the business can stay open. I will do all that I can to support it. However, hope alone is not a strategy. The Government must do more to support our hospitality industry.
528 words. Text as published by the Northern Ireland Assembly.
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