Timmy Dooley (Clare, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

That is welcome but it is worth putting on the record that while sport falls within the remit of the committee we did not confine the hearings to just the sporting organisations. We did bring various medical experts before the committee to hear their views on the harmful effects of alcohol. I would be happy if the Government comes forward with a proposal that says the working group should be a combination of the health and transport committees, the latter representing sport.

I just do not believe that while we have had an input, we will be part of the process.

It is well recognised that the abuse and over-consumption of alcohol are a huge cancer in Irish society. The problem spans the socioeconomic divide and features among all demographic groups. There is real concern over the capacity of alcohol companies to target young people. Many of the influences that attract new drinkers are exerted outside the sporting environment. People took up drinking through peer pressure long before alcohol companies were sponsoring sports to the current extent or before sports were televised to the current extent. In such times, there was still over-consumption and abuse of alcohol. It is a cultural issue and one we must try to change. While I accept the point that sponsorship and advertising comprise an important component of the problem, I believe banning sponsorship now would be more of a box-ticking exercise than a means of having a meaningful impact on addressing the over-consumption of alcohol.

It was rightly identified that pricing and display in the plethora of retail outlets probably constitute the most aggressive form of marketing. It is rare that young people who engage in over-consumption, which they call binge drinking, would be drinking the brands that are associated with the subject matter we are discussing. It is usually the cheapest products and those most freely available in retail outlets that are abused. Considerable work must be done in this regard. This work will have the greatest impact initially.

The approach I desire is a little like the approach we took to road safety. We did not introduce penalty points initially for not having a reflector on the back of one's bicycle, nor did we introduce points for what were considered the less serious offences. One will get buy-in from the public if one starts out with what will deliver the most, namely, addressing the control, supply and sale of cheap alcohol. Under the road safety strategy, it is now appropriate to receive two penalty points for what were considered relatively minor offences when the programme commenced. There is a lot to be learned in this regard.

We must also try to deal with the attitude towards the consumption of alcohol. It is still a practice of some coaches and team managers to bring an under age team, such as a team of players under ten, 11 or 12, for example, to a pub after a game. That has a much greater role in fostering the acceptance of the consumption of alcohol than having the local pub’s brands on a billboard in the playing field. To have more buy-in, we should at least try to put in place a programme that would establish a code of conduct for team managers and coaches of teams under 18 such that they would stay well clear of the pub, both before and after a game. The pub should not be the meeting point after a match. I am not suggesting that the coaches allow children to drink in the pub environment. They do not and they are mindful of the problem. However, it is the embracing of the acceptance of alcohol that leads to the continuation of a culture that needs to be addressed.

From the interaction the committee had with the main sporting organisations, it noted they are very mindful of the important role they play in ensuring young people steer clear of alcohol. They pointed out to us that much of the funding they are able to generate – they do not have alternative sources at present – is used by them to create programmes that get young people involved in the various sports. The Deputy is correct that the overall health impact of sport has the capacity, in itself, to attract people to a more active lifestyle. This has a definite benefit on public health, including on childhood obesity, which is talked about in the House from time to time. There is no correlation between the abuse of alcohol and childhood obesity but the latter is a very significant issue.

While there is talk about taxing fatty foods, nobody is suggesting one should limit the capacity of companies such as McDonald's or Burger King to advertise in the way they do. Our State would very much be considered a nanny state if it were to go down that road. I assume that, if similar reports were produced on obesity and alcohol, empirical data on the abuse of and over-indulgence in alcohol could be applied to overindulgence in fatty foods such that both reports would reach similar conclusions. We regard alcohol differently, as we should, not because of its negative impact on the individual consumer but because of its impact on society and families.

We must move very carefully and slowly and in a considered way. If an appropriate strategy were set down by the State with the objective of reducing the abuse of alcohol in a staged and controlled way, there would be buy-in not only from the sporting organisations but also from society in general. I hope this will be the case in seven, eight or ten years.

The road safety programme was dealt with in a non-partisan and very co-operate way in this House under successive Governments. It has been successful. The same can be done in the case of alcohol.

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