James Lawless (Kildare North, Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

My party will be supporting the Bill and I am delighted to do so also. The legislation is pro-enterprise and favours small local businesses. Like Deputy Lahart, I wish to acknowledge the foresight of the former Taoiseach and Uachtarán of Fianna Fáil, Brian Cowen, who in 2005, when he was Minister for Finance, included the microbrewery tax credit in the Finance Bill. It goes to show that great things can grow from small seeds.

According to the latest figures, 479 people are employed in the microcraft brewing industry and 167 jobs were created in the sector last year. It is an industry that has taken off, capturing the public imagination, as well as people's taste buds and the entrepreneurial spirit.

This far-sighted, sensible and positive Bill is a tribute to Deputy Alan Kelly. I spoke to him about it in some detail before Christmas when he introduced it on First Stage. I also wish to pay tribute to the local entrepreneurs who have brought their enterprises to this stage. Microbreweries are trading successfully and enjoying a renaissance given the support they attract from the public. Their success is almost a problem because they are limited in terms of supply.

I see what has happened in my constituency of Kildare North where there has been a virtual explosion of interest in craft beer. The Kildare Brewing Company is coming to my own local, Lock 13, in Sallins. I am also familiar with Trouble Brewing in Kill, the Rye River Brewing Company in Celbridge and Kelly's Mountain Brew in Clane. Their products have different tastes and textures, but are all doing extremely well both locally and in the wider market. Such small breweries face a common quandary, however, in that they cannot sell their products on the premises. This Bill seeks to address that difficulty.

Many parts of the country are facing challenges because town centre retail outlets are struggling. The hospitality and tourism sectors, however, are booming. This legislation could breathe new life into those sectors, thus fulfilling their potential for further growth.

I am most familiar with the Lock 13 and Kildare Brewing Company example, which sits on the banks of the Grand Canal in Sallins. We are attempting to build a greenway there to attract tourists who wish to cycle or walk along the canal. Once this Bill is enacted, visitors will be able to stop at the brewery, take a tour, sample craft beer, purchase supplies and then cycle on their merry way back up to Dublin or elsewhere. It is a 100% winning formula which supports local industry and promotes tourism, as well as involving all the amenities the area has to offer. That in itself is a fantastic initiative.

In the past, beer was the poor cousin of wine and spirits but that culture is beginning to change. Some weekend newspapers now carry columns on beer, including notes on taste and other aspects of these beverages. Beer is thus being subjected to the same degree of forensic investigation that wines have been for many decades.

It is good to celebrate food and drink, including emporiums, markets and artisan stalls, which can add so much to the local economy. Such services can make an area or town unique, with local produce that can be enjoyed, tasted, savoured and sampled. This new found sophistication in culinary items and drinks is to be welcomed.

I have attended brew nights when brewers speak on the various products that are available for sampling. In addition, brewers are investing in training their staff and this trend can only increase with visitors arriving in breweries as a result of this Bill when it is, hopefully, passed. It all provides for a higher order of experience both for customers and staff who can advise on the different types of beer, their ingredients and brewing processes. I welcome that extension to the craft beer industry which is similar to what has happened in the wine sector for many years.

Amsterdam has its Heineken museum, while Edinburgh has the whisky museum which I have had the pleasure of visiting. Dublin is most famous for the Guinness Hop Store which is a fantastic tourism site that attracts thousands of visitors every day.

This legislation will open up added potential around the country featuring visits to many breweries in many counties. Some 23 of the 26 counties are currently hosting microbreweries. There are four in my own constituency and probably a few more in south Kildare. The Ceann Comhairle might be familiar with them. I am sure that many more will emerge as this idea takes off.

The Bill is a common sense measure which ticks a number of boxes. Essentially it is pro-enterprise, pro-tourism and pro-indigenous development. The majority of ingredients used are sourced locally, thus providing local employment. There is also an export potential and local enterprise offices are involved in those opportunities.

I commend Deputy Kelly for bringing this Bill to Second Stage. I look forward to the microbrewing industry taking off as a result of the legislation being passed in due course. If I were to take a rare day off I might even sample one of the microbreweries myself.

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