Marie Moloney (Labour) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State to the House and am glad to see him take up the position vacated by Deputy Shortall.

We in this country can guarantee that this issue will always be a topic of conversation here. People talk about the weather, they talk about football and they talk about how much they had to drink at the weekend or the night before. We are currently campaigning for a "Yes" vote in the referendum on the rights of children, but we have a duty of care to children who cry themselves to sleep at night. We have a duty of care to women who are used as punchbags by drunks and we have a duty of care to men who consider ending their lives following alcohol abuse. It is important we continue to consider the issues along these lines.

I do not agree that drink has not got any cheaper. It has. One can now buy a bottle of beer for the price of a bar of chocolate. I know as a non-drinker that if one buys a pint of beer in pubs, it is cheaper than buying a mineral. What does this say to young people going out to pubs or night clubs? It says that it is cheaper to drink beer than to drink a mineral. Therefore, we are not doing anything to discourage our young people from drinking. We must look at this. People are drinking a lot more at home and we cannot blame them. The drink driving laws and the price of drink in pubs mean it is easier for people to drink at home. Therefore, it is natural for people to buy alcohol in supermarkets and local shops.

We must keep a watch on the price of alcohol, because we are making it very easy for people to drink. Perhaps I should not mention it, but one can buy a whole slab of 25 large cans for ¤25. This is exceptionally cheap. One day when I went into the supermarket I saw a man with a trolley full to the top with alcohol and wondered whether it was for his own consumption or whether he was buying it cheap to sell it in a pub. These are all issues we must address. We could speak about this topic all day, but I have no more time. I thank the Chair for his indulgence.