Maire Devine (Sinn Fein) | Oireachtas source

I attended a briefing yesterday in the audio-visual room on the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill 2015, which is due back before the House shortly. The briefing was organised by Senator Black. I applaud her tenacity and work in pushing this measure in the interest of public health, and in being determined and steadfast in the face of intense pressure. We have debated the implication of this Bill at length and we know that passing it will dramatically improve the health of our nation. At the briefing, two harrowing personal accounts were provided by families that have been destroyed as result of alcohol.Yesterday morning, we again received a glossy production from the Responsible Retailers of Alcohol in Ireland on the envisaged structural changes that will be required for this measure. In its initial interpretation, it outlined that there would be a cost imposed on each retailer of about €50,000. In yesterday's production, there was not a mention of a single euro. What is it all about? It is about visibility and always has been. It has used the financial burden as an argument and a tool of fear. This lobby is being led by large corporate powers. It has used small retailers deceivingly to further its greedy aims.

We are hugely cognisant of the pressures there are on small retailers. This Bill will particularly impact on businesses in the Border area in which there are already price differentials and currency variations. We should be consulting with our colleagues in the North on this matter and looking at an all-Ireland cohesive alcohol strategy. I wish to finish by thanking the Minister of State, Deputy Marcella Corcoran Kennedy, for remaining firm on this matter.