Catherine Noone (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I support the comments of my colleague, Senator Colm Burke, regarding obesity. Similar to this is the eradication of vending machines in schools, in particular those machines that contain junk food. The idea that they are in our hospitals goes against the grain. This is a wider issue. The health service is struggling to supply good health care with relatively small budgets in many instances, but our approach to health is ridiculous in many ways. We must consider the foundation years and take care of people when they are vulnerable. Children in schools could be looked after via vending machines that dispense apples or the like. This would help them realise at a young age that food is fuel and will make them healthy. Vending machines that dispense chocolate bars, crisps and Coke should not be introduced. Everyone loves to have those foods occasionally, but if they are being eaten regularly, they create a significant problem. Senator Colm Burke was right. There is a problem with our general approach to hospitals. This is a major issue and I support the Senator in his call.

I wish to raise the issue of alcohol consumption, harm and costs. Today, a new report by the Health Research Board, HRB, highlighted a large number of statistics that I have before me but that I will not go through on the Order of Business. The impact of alcohol-related issues on our health is serious, although I sound like a killjoy discussing all of these issues on the Order of Business. The report highlighted that the rate of alcoholic liver disease trebled between 1995 and 2013. The report makes various points regarding the impact on our health, of which I will mention a couple.The number of people discharged from hospital whose condition was fully attributable to alcohol increased by 82% between 1995 and 2013, from 9,420 to 17,120. Between 2001 and 2010, one in ten breast cancer cases was attributable to alcohol.

Perhaps the impact of alcohol on the economy will get people to concentrate on the issue a little more. In 2013, alcohol related discharges accounted for 160,210 bed days in public hospitals. Alcohol related issues cost the taxpayer €1.5 billion per annum. I could speak about this issue for an entire day. I ask the Leader to request that the Minister come to the House as soon as possible and progress the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill 2015. Minimum pricing will help because there is a clear correlation between the price of alcohol and the amount people drink. Addressing price would be a step in the right direction.