Michael Healy-Rae (Kerry, Independent) | Oireachtas source

I reiterate that I cannot agree with the amendment. I do not agree with what the Minister proposes to do in the future. I never mentioned rural Ireland in my contribution because I never tried to say that this was specifically for one area or another. I am against what has been proposed for the whole country because I do not agree with it. If people are here in Dublin, win a game and want to go to a public house to celebrate, I can see nothing wrong with that. If they live in rural Ireland and want to do the same, I see nothing wrong with that. It is political correctness gone mad. That is what is happening in this country. While things may have been wrong in the past, we are now in a race to the bottom in trying to make ourselves so politically correct that when people win a match, they should go away and have a banana. If people want to celebrate, there is nothing wrong with it, with or without alcohol. It does not have to be with alcohol. Many people go to their local pub after a game and they celebrate by having a mineral or a bottle of orange. I have been great friends with people who never tasted a drop of alcohol in their lives but are regular visitors to a pub, like going to matches and like celebrating in the local pubs afterwards. It is not about alcohol but being in a place where people gather. People in Ireland gather in public houses. It has been a tradition in the past and I see nothing wrong with that. It is not a criminal offence to want to visit one's local pub.

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