Imelda Henry (Fine Gael)

I welcome the Minister to the House and welcome the opportunity to speak on the Bill. We all know the reduction in alcohol levels has played a major part in reducing the number of fatalities on our roads. We are aware that the new lower limit is consistent with practice in many European countries. The flip side of this policy is that it has created major social concerns, especially in rural areas. For many years the pub was the social centre of many communities where people had a drink in a controlled environment. The whole structure of towns and rural areas has changed completely. We are still grappling with the epidemic of road deaths and we are making positive progress, but we have created a serious social issue whereby many elderly people are isolated and vulnerable and unable to socialise in the way they did.

The legislation, which has been widely supported, will help the Government reduce fatalities on our roads. Statistics would suggest that speed and drugs are now the major reason so many young people, particularly young men, are killed on our roads. Statistics also show that these people who are isolated rarely cause any fatalities on the road. While the reduction is welcome, I call on the Government to implement policies that will help the many hundreds of thousands of people who are vulnerable, isolated and lonely.

It is clear we have a serious problem with alcohol and I hope the Government will deliver on its promise to deal with the below-cost selling of alcohol in supermarkets. In the late 1980s there was a proposal to legislate for a separate area with a separate entrance for alcohol in supermarkets that would be manned by mature staff. Unfortunately, this legislation was not passed, and perhaps it is time we showed some common sense and revisited these proposals.