Simon Harris (Wicklow, Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I want to say to Deputy Collins that advertising works. Nobody is suggesting people will become zombies but, as Deputy Shortall has eloquently outlined, the drinks companies take out advertising because they believe it will make us drink more alcohol and more of their brand of alcohol. They would not be spending many millions of euro of their commercial operation on advertisements if they did not believe it works. They are not advertising for the good of their health. They are advertising to the detriment of people's health.

8 o’clock

Instinctively I think there is something wrong with the idea of something, as Deputy Kelly has rightly articulated, which is as good as sport for our health and which is part of our Healthy Ireland agenda, being contaminated by advertising things that are clearly bad for our health. It does not sit well with me as Minister for Health and it should not sit well with any of us. There is an idea that the Bill is bad for rural Ireland. We often hear on many different health matters that they only affect people living in the greater Dublin area. There is a serious problem with alcohol in all parts of this country, both urban and rural. As Minister, I have a need and a duty to introduce public health legislation, which protects all of our people in every part of the country. We should not try to divide our country into parts. This is a national health issue, which affects every community in our country.

I do not accept that there are no alternative ways to fund sport. Deputy Shortall gave examples of where that has happened. I do not see this as a Holy Grail with a link between the two that can never be decoupled. It can be and should be, and it is desirable that it would be. I propose in the Bill that we make a start in the provisions that we have outlined to protect children in sport. I propose that we then, with the built-in review to this legislation within three years of commencement, return and sports sponsorship could be examined as part of that review.

Section 15 will prohibit the advertising of alcohol in, or on, a sports area during a sporting event, an event aimed at children or at events in which the majority of participants or competitors are children. In addition, section 16 will prohibit the sponsorship of events in which the majority of participants or competitors are children, events aimed particularly at children and events involving driving or racing motor vehicles. It is important that we clearly break the link between driving and alcohol. Sponsorship is defined as a contribution that is intended to promote an alcohol product or brand or to promote alcohol consumption. I am pleased that we are making a start in the legislation and I would like us to go further in the future. Section 21 provides that there must be a review of all advertising provisions within three years of the commencement of that section. The issue of sports sponsorship will be revisited as part of that review. For these reasons, I do not propose to accept these amendments on this occasion.

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