John Crown (Independent) | Oireachtas source

Having heard this compelling evidence, I believe some or all of the increase in revenue which is generated for someone by unit pricing should be taken into the public Exchequer and used for research. I also believe that we will have in Ireland a near unique opportunity to do original research but also to confirm the Canadian research if we do this. We should set about doing this prospectively and put structures in place to collect all of the relevant health and consumption data. If we are asked to renew this legislation at some stage we will be in a good position to show its real impacts.

On a very minor medical point, the reason some people think the same number of units of different forms of alcohol has different effects is that some of the other effects of alcohol that we are aware of, apart from the effect on the liver, cancer causation, etc., are due to some of the congeners in alcohol. For instance, one might have a worse hangover for the same number of units of alcohol in different kinds of drink depending on some of the other chemicals present. It does not mean less damage to the liver if one does not have a hangover from a “purer” or less adulterated alcoholic drink. That is not how it works.