Fergus O'Dowd (Louth, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

This is a very important debate. There are differing views on either side of the House. I would like to share my thoughts with those who are concerned about this issue. One of the saddest images of how alcohol affects people is the road safety advertisement which shows a mother looking at a picture of her child after the latter was killed in a road traffic accident because somebody was over the limit. This Bill is about trying to make sure that the person who drinks and drives does not drink over the limit and controls the amount of alcohol he or she takes. Preferably, someone who is drinking should not drive at all. We have hundreds of road deaths every year, a very significant number of which are due to alcohol abuse. That is unacceptable.

We all sadly know people who have died from suicide. I know one family whose son spent the whole night drinking spirits before, sadly, killing himself. He can never come back. His family remains deeply distressed. He had other underlying problems, as many people do, but alcohol was a very significant factor in his death. I wish we could help people in that situation who suffer from depression and have other issues, emotional problems and so on to drink less and get help sooner, and wish there was better help available as Deputy Darragh O'Brien pointed out about the drugs task forces. We need assist more people who are in deep emotional and personal distress, who abuse alcohol and sadly in many cases pass away.

I also think of somebody I knew quite well. I used to have a drink with him occasionally. When I would meet him in the pub at about 10 o'clock at night or whatever, he would have a glass of clear liquid which I thought was soda water or water. When he got cancer, I was told in fact that it was a half pint of neat vodka that he had every night in the pub. That is what happened to him. He cannot come back either. His family would love to still have him. They believe that the alcohol caused the cancer that killed him. To my mind, the Bill is about ensuring that we abuse alcohol less and provide more help to those who do abuse it. One of the key issues relates to education and support.

I happened to be in Nice on Bastille Day some years ago.

There were tens of thousands of people present. The city was chock-a-block. My family and I walked up and down the promenade that evening. Nobody was drinking at all, either on the promenade or on the beach. The French, on that night anyway, had an entirely different attitude to alcohol than that which might be seen after an all-Ireland celebration. Unfortunately, we do not have those types of celebrations very often in Louth, but perhaps I can refer to other counties. The question of using alcohol on days of national celebration arises. St. Patrick's Day in some towns is awful.People drink themselves sick and silly and go out on the streets at 4 p.m. or 5 p.m.. All sorts of court cases arise as a result.

We have to educate for change but we also have to reach out and support people who have significant problems. The Red Door project in Drogheda, in my constituency, does not have enough support. It has outreach workers who help people with drug and alcohol abuse problems. It needs support. Deputy Darragh O'Brien is absolutely right that we must reach out, support and financially resource community organisations that help to deal with alcohol abuse. That is key to dealing with the problem.

The question of educating and supporting young people in relationship formation and dealing with relationships that break down naturally arises. As they go through life - particularly early in life - people experience relationships that do not work out. That is just as well for most of us, and for the other party as well. The point is that young people in particular are often not able to deal with a breakdown in a personal relationship or they may not have the confidence to actually develop a relationship with a person without alcohol being present. It is hugely important, particularly in schools and as people move up through secondary level in schools, that people are educated so that they can deal with relationships, disappointments, sadness and the sticks and arrows in all of our lives. Turning to alcohol is a key difficulty which causes problems. We can educate, inform, support and nurture people so that when those tough times come - and they come to everybody - they are able to deal with it in a mature, responsible way.

One of the key things about this legislation is that it particularly targets young people and protects them even more. It is appalling that 61% of children surveyed by the Health Promotion Research Centre at NUI Galway owned alcohol-branded merchandise. Alcohol is ubiquitous and present in the items owned by 61% of young people. We are talking about children here. That is utterly unacceptable. I welcome and support the strong language in this Bill, which seeks to penalise and ban the sale in Ireland of imported children's clothing that promotes alcohol products. It is absolutely insidious and must be stopped. It must stop now and that is why I support this Bill.

There are tens of thousands of people working in the alcohol industry in Ireland, in our pubs and restaurants among other places. These people provide an excellent service, but it is critical to note that society is changing. When people went out to the pub years ago, there was nothing other than the demon alcohol available. Now, people go out for meals and social evenings. Pubs and places which do not change the services they provide or add value to them will go to the wall because many people nowadays do not just want the seat and the glass; they want a meal and they want to have a different type of life. Many pubs and restaurants are changing very significantly. I welcome that. We talk about European culture, coffee culture and the coffee bar where one can have a coffee or a drink and socialise in a new and different way. This is now becoming available in Ireland. I welcome all of the changes in our culture in that respect.

The core of the Bill for me is the protection of young people and the support of young people in relationships. We need to educate and inform people and support them in how they manage in relationships as they grow older. We need to help them to deal with tough times, the loss of people they care about, family breakdowns and all of those issues.

The question of the insidious presence of alcohol in sport is hugely important. We speak about the Heineken Cup and the Guinness All-Ireland. That is not acceptable any more. Sports sponsorship from alcohol companies, in my view, should be significantly reduced. I am aware that it takes time to phase it out. There is also a quid pro quofor that. We must acknowledge that we either require greater taxation on alcohol to fund other activities or the taxpayer will fund other activities themselves. It is not acceptable that lives are destroyed by what happens. The familiarisation of people with alcohol in social and sporting occasions plays a part in that. This legislation is hugely important.

As is the case with Deputy Breathnach's county, companies that produce alcohol have operations in my county and they provide many jobs. I want to sustain and nurture them. In many ways, the alcohol industry is a specialist industry. There are craft breweries, special new brands of whiskey or gins, such as that produced by Listoke Distillery, for example. That market is a different place. It is about a unique and special product that is unique and special to the town or the location. I am not saying that it is never abused, but I believe that these are different products that are branded differently and they are not part of the abuse of alcohol which happens elsewhere. I obviously support those businesses.

I listened to the comments made in this Chamber earlier. I hope this legislation is passed. If there are good and enlightened amendments put in the next stage that is fine, but I believe that the drive, energy and support from our community to avoid alcohol abuse must be absolutely paramount. That is the most important aspect for any of us. Nobody wants to lose a family member to alcohol abuse. I believe the intention of this legislative assembly is to ensure that does not happen and that we have fair but firm laws on this issue.

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