Mary Hanafin (Dún Laoghaire, Fianna Fail)

Ba mhaith liom mo bhuíochas a gabháil leis na Seanadóirí for their support of the Bill which will add to the facilities on offer and enhance the tourism product available. On the specific issues raised, Senator O'Donovan asked about the Good Friday position. If a convention event takes place on a Sunday or Good Friday, the rules I outlined would apply rather than the normal licensing provisions. This would mean alcohol could be served until 2 a.m. or an hour after the conclusion of the event, whichever is earlier.

With regard to the consolidation Act, as I noted, it is my intention to provide for the publication of a sale of alcohol Bill by mid-2010 which will modernise and streamline all the laws relating to the sale and consumption of alcohol. A number of objectives will be set out.

I will relay to the appropriate Minister Deputy Boyle's concerns about the early day licences. Senator Quinn noted the principle which applied many years ago in Skerries of giving people good experience rather than making money immediately and that still applies. We saw how those in the tourism industry responded so positively to the problems experienced by people affected by the volcanic ash cloud recently. Where people got delayed, they were looked after well. The principle was that if a good message was sent abroad of a positive experience in Ireland, they would return. The boomerang principle applies today as it did in the 1940s. I thank Senators for their support of the legislation.