The suspension of Mountbellew Mart’s licence has been lifted after just over a week following a “meeting of minds” between the mart and its licensing authority saw the parties agree on a set of undertakings to be given by the mart.

On Thursday, the High Court heard that the Property Services Regulatory Authority (PSRA) had been informed that Mountbellew Regional Co-operative Livestock Mart Society Limited managed to raise amounts totalling €183,000 in recent days.

An affidavit had been filed by the PSRA on 7 February which set out a number of alleged issues with the mart’s affairs and which stated that the mart’s client account had fallen into a “significant deficit”.

This deficit is understood to have been addressed using significant funds generated from “contributors in the local community”.

Mountbellew Mart proposed eight undertakings to the PSRA - one of which being that details of the persons who supplied the mart with funds to fill the account’s shortfall will be provided to the authority in confidence.

These persons will be asked to confirm that they are not owed money from the client account, PSRA’s counsel told the court.

No customer credit

Another undertaking will see that no credit is extended from the client account, which the PSRA suggested would prevent the account from re-entering a deficit situation.

The mart will have to engage with an “expert business consultant” on managing aspects of the business, including cashflow, and the mart is to update the PSRA fortnightly on its undertakings.

The PSRA is to be also forewarned of any issues of concern that arise in the mart’s business.

Mountbellew Mart has said the deficit was the result of “historical debt” incurred in 2011/2012.

It stated that damage could occur to the reputation of the mart if it was to remain closed when sales would usually take place.

The court heard that “nothing that the authority has agreed to today should be interpreted as being a concession” on an ongoing license renewal process or any investigations authorities may undertake into the mart’s affairs.

Mountbellew Mart will return to court in three months’ time for an update of its progress on the interim undertakings it agreed to follow.

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Mountbellew Mart in court