Mattie McGrath (Tipperary, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I am focused. Labelling will have a terrible impact. We fought very hard in the programme for Government for rural-proofing of legislation and we are passing legislation here that is not in any way rural-proofed but is anti-rural and also totally anti-work. I am supporting the man or woman who earns a day's pay. I hear the Taoiseach saying he wants to support people who get up early in the morning. These people get up very early. They put their hands in their pockets to invest in the site, restore old buildings and breweries and get some funding. It is not easy to get funding and planning permission and get through the strict regime that applies to the selling of alcohol and craft beers. It is right that this has to be regulated. These people sometimes go without wages to try to get a company off the ground. The number of microbreweries has mushroomed. I mentioned earlier Deputy Kelly's Bill last year to allow craft breweries to sell their products on site. We all supported that but legislation but this Bill is the direct opposite of that. It proposes placing labels on bottles and in premises and installing barriers at the entrance to off-licence areas of shops. I am not in favour of shops having too much access when it comes to alcohol.

We are not tackling the issues we should tackle. For probably seven or eight budgets now I have made submissions seeking the introduction of a capping charge. Vintners and others want such a charge. For example, two dozen cans or bottles are being sold for €18. Deputy Danny Healy-Rae said that according to international research we are the most expensive country in Europe to buy alcohol over the counter in the pub, yet we will not support these pubs. Why do we refuse in budget after budget to try to increase the price of alcohol sold in off-licences and shops, which is readily available to young people because unscrupulous older people buy it for them. There are also younger people working in shops who are unable to resist the pressure to sell it to their peers. I told the Minister that a very important function with a long history in a town in my county had to be cancelled because of what happened one Sunday night and the amount of drink people walked out of the supermarkets with.

See this speech in context