John Crown (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the witnesses. In my day job I do a bit of biomedical research, and it is very nice to hear a really professional and top-quality research-based presentation in these halls. I have a couple of quick questions. I may have missed the witnesses mentioning the average price of a unit of alcohol purchased in Ireland now. Do we have some idea of the quartiles and what percentage of units of alcohol are purchased for less than 50 cent, between 50 cent and 75 cent, etc.? I presume the delegation's expertise extends to comparative research and other strategies for reducing alcohol consumption. Are the witnesses aware of anything else that has worked as well as this? Is there any other strategy of alcohol control across society that has worked as well as pricing?

We have had a bit of chat in this committee about the antics of the tobacco industry and a fair bit of discussion about pseudo-science and so on. Have the witnesses encountered much disinformation funded heavily by the industry which attempts to discredit their research? Will they give advice on how to handle that? Getting to the question of price elasticity, do the witnesses have any sense that there is a ceiling effect beyond which one would be dealing with compulsive or addiction-driven drinkers who will not be price-sensitive in their demand for alcohol? I commend the witnesses for their great research and wonderful presentation.