Just three busking fines paid so far by Cork city buskers

Eight fines have been issued so far under busking byelaws Cork City Council brought in last summer, with less than half of these paid, as a councillor said that the new rules have improved the quality of street performance in the city.

The bylaws give An Garda Síochána the power to direct a performer to move if they are outside specified hours on a designated street marker, have exceeded their time limit of two hours, or do not hold or produce a valid permit.

A €30 permit is necessary to perform, with an additional €30 for amplification. 

To date, Cork City Council has issued 161 permits to buskers; 112 annual permits and 49 short-term permits, “reflecting strong engagement from performers”, a council spokesperson told The Echo.

“Since the byelaws came into effect, eight fines of €75 have been issued. Of these, three have been paid, one remains within the payment timeframe and legal proceedings have been brought for four unpaid fines.” 

The spokesperson explained: “The majority of compliance issues involve isolated incidents, with only a small number of repeat offences.

“Our enforcement approach balances education, deterrence and enforcement. Collaboration with An Garda Síochána s enforcement, particularly during weekends and late evenings.” 

Two men who perform on St Patrick's Street as the ‘funky leprechauns’ appeared before Cork District Court in March, where they were given four months to comply with the busking bylaws.

Fine Gael councillor Shane O’Callaghan proposed at Monday’s council meeting that the bylaws were amended by inserting a new section stating “the equipment used by a Street Performer shall not include any electronic amplifier, amplification system or loudspeaker”.

He was told by Tony Donovan, acting senior engineer of local area development and operations: “when Cork City Council approved the making of the bylaws in May 2024 the Councillors requested that the bylaws be reviewed after 18 months. Accordingly, they are due for review in November 2025.” 

Mr Donovan added: “It should be noted that to date most performers such as singers, guitarists, circus performers use amplification and backing tracks to their performances. 

"Regarding the noise levels, any performers that Cork City Council inspectors have met that may have been exceeding the 75dB prescribed level have always obliged by lowering the volume when asked.” 

The Green party’s Oliver Moran told The Echo: “It’s good to see strong numbers in of people literally buying into the bylaws by receiving permits. It's purely anecdotal, but I feel the quality of street performance, while it was strong before, has now even improved further since.

“Maybe that’s due to a sense that Cork is a city with a robust and ive framework for genuine artists. I think the engagement that happened with artists in the process of developing the bye-laws nurtured some of that.

“It made clear that these aren't punitive bye-laws but are about recognising the contribution of performers to the life of the city, while putting in ground rules for sharing the city centre.” 

He added: “There remains a very small number of performers who are too loud, too repetitive, that don't respect the shared nature of the city centre. The bylaws have put in place a framework for dealing with them, which will need time to play out.”