Seanad debates
Tuesday, 3 December 2002
Order of Business.
The Minister for Justice, Equality and Law Reform should also be invited to discuss the issue of the abuse of alcohol. I do not want to be driven by television, but it makes things we do not wish to see clear to us. Last Thursday night's "Prime Time" programme on the abuse of alcohol should have everybody concerned. I say this as one who is anything but a puritan on the topic. There is a case, not for a partisan political look, but a serious reflective look at the issue. We should have a serious look at attitudes to alcohol, the regulation of its sale, its control and our value system. I am concerned about living in a society where one quarter of our young people seem to believe the only way to enjoy oneself is to get so drunk as to forget one has enjoyed oneself, and to do this on a regular basis. I find this quite distressing.
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