Drinks licence cancelled for fatal fire hotel

APerth hotel which has been closed since a horrific fire in January last year – and in which three people died – has had its alcohol licence revoked by Perth and Kinross Licensing Board.

Councillors unanimously agreed to rescind the premises licence of the New County Hotel.

The annual fees have not been paid for two years with the outstanding bill owed to Perth and Kinross Council amounting to £1,000.

Sixty firefighters and 21 ambulance crews responded after a fire broke out just after 5am at the hotel on County Place on Jamuary 2 2023.

It claimed the lives of sisters Donna Janse Van Rensburg (44) and Sharon Mclean (47) from Aberdeen and Keith Russell (38) from Edinburgh as well as Ms Van Rensburg’s’s pet King Charles Spaniel, Joey.

Last week a spokesperson for the Scottish Fire and Rescue Service confirmed a joint investigation with

Police Scotland into the incident was still ongoing.

The hotel’s owner, Rashid Hussain, 59, died in a London hospital in August last year.

Mr Hussain owned both Edwin Hotels Ltd, which owned the building, and Perth Hospitality Limited which ran the New County Hotel.

Perth Hospitality Ltd went into liquidation last August and is now in receivership.

No representative of the hotel was present at yesterday’s meeting.

Depute clerk to the licensing board Collin Elliott told councillors: “We have had no contact from the official receiver as to whether they would attend or not.”

The review was due to non-payment of licensing fees for 2022 and 2023, of £500 each year amounting to £1,000 owed.

Councillors were told a reminder had been sent for each year’s non-payment.

Councillors unanimously voted to revoke the hotel’s licence for its breach of the licensing agreement in its nonpayment of fees.

BLAZE: The New County Hotel is boarded up; below, firefighters on January 2 last year.