Martin Conway (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

Cuirim fáilte roimh an Aire go dtí an Teach. One would be somewhat taken with Senator Norris?s quite detailed description of what staff in the emergency services have to put up with as a result of intoxication. Whatever about the weekends, which are dreadful, every night in this city accident and emergency units have to deal with people who are comatose as a result of alcohol misuse. It is a societal issue which must be dealt with. The Oireachtas has a responsibility to protect society from itself. However, in this regard, we have failed.

The facts of alcohol consumption and misuse have been outlined in great detail by the Leader. His percentages, however, may have been somewhat conservative as I believe they are far worse. To deal with the problem in the immediate term, we can introduce minimum pricing. There is nothing more appalling than when supermarkets have special offers on alcohol. Some months ago, Senator Power highlighted in the Chamber an appalling advertisement for cheap alcohol on children?s allowance day from a supermarket in Dublin?s north side. As a result of her actions, the advertisement was withdrawn. The problem is one still sees beer for ¤1 in supermarkets, as Senator Norris observed. Such offers mean young people and students can drink very cheaply which leads to an uncontrolled drinking environment. We can deal with this as a priority through minimum pricing.

I have always advocated the American system of restricting the sale of alcohol to people over 21. The identification card system is rigorously enforced in the United States. While no Member is 21 or near it, everyone knows how young people in, say, Boston will be asked for age identification when looking to buy a drink in a bar. That is the kind of culture we need in Ireland. We also need bar owners and their staff to be vigilant and responsible when serving alcohol. We have all seen people falling off bar stools but who keep getting served which is unacceptable.

The drinks industry sponsoring any sports event is a complete no-no. We need to break the umbilical cord between drink and sport. I would also advocate removing drink licences from GAA, rugby, golf, tennis and other sports clubs as a means to breaking this umbilical cord. There is no reason alcohol should be sold on trains as there is no train journey in this country longer than three hours.

In the long term we need to create a societal change which must start at primary school level and percolate to second level. If we do not get into young children?s mindset that there is a better way to live than abusing alcohol, then we are probably too late. The Minister of State, Deputy White, is an exceptionally capable Minister. I have no doubt he is taking all our views into consideration when formulating his strategy in this area. While he will not be able to solve it instantly with a magic wand, he will start the incremental process of change which will lead to a better and more mature societal outlook to alcohol.

I recall a former justice Minister, Michael McDowell, for all his faults, advocating a café-bar culture. At the time, he did not receive the support he deserved for this idea. The one way of reducing the comatose effects of alcohol is through ensuring people can eat while they are drinking. The café-bar culture is prevalent across Europe and works. It is awful to witness O?Connell Street on a Saturday night when at the same time in Rome people enjoy themselves in a mature way. I am not saying there are no alcohol problems in Italy but there is a different cultural attitude towards its consumption.

We need to explain to and educate young people on how to drink. Parents have a crucial role in introducing their children to alcohol. The notion of total abstinence is not going to happen. Young people are going to drink. The question is whether we can make them drink sensibly. Over the years, we have tackled significant issues successfully and we can tackle this one. We were the brave country that first introduced a smoking ban in bars and restaurants which is now the norm across Europe. The then Minister, Deputy Martin, took the tough decision on smoking. Similar tough decisions need to be taken with alcohol. We need to face down the powerful lobby groups. When the smoking ban was introduced, some lobby groups went on television saying they ran the country. I have news for them. They do not run the country. The Government runs the country and it will do the right thing by society.