Frank Feighan (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I thank Senators Lawless, Boyhan, McDowell and Craughwell for bringing this important Bill to the House today. I welcome my former colleague, Ms Imelda Henry, who did a great deal of work on this issue over many years. When I was growing up in Boyle, County Roscommon, there were 32 pubs. Like every town and village we grew up in a haze of alcohol. Our country would be a great deal better if we did not have that love affair with alcohol. Our diaspora would be better off if we were confident around alcohol. We have this love affair of marking occasions such as baptisms, first communions, confirmations, wedding and deaths in the pub or the hotel.

As we have become more confident and can do without alcohol, we do not need to be minded. I remember when public houses were closed in Dublin for the holy hour, an hour and a half or two hours, and then opened again. In my own town the pubs were supposed to close from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m. on a Sunday so the men would go home for the Sunday dinner, but invariably most never went home. When I think of that behaviour today, I wonder how we got along. On weekend nights, in particular three or four gardaí had to clear the pubs. This happened in every town and village. Let us consider the level of Garda resources that were used to clear the pubs. Things are different now. The pubs are not as busy and today there are only nine pubs open in my town and they certainly do not open during the day.

Let me describe what Good Friday was like when I was growing up. It was like a scene from "Killinaskully". When one got up in the morning, one would see fellows going to the train. They were travelling so as to have a drink on the train. Then other groups, and I went myself, would go to Enniskillen because the pubs were open and one would meet everybody from Ballinamore or Carrick-on-Shannon, the same would happen in every Border area. The hotels were another option. My local hotel was always packed. I remember asking the hotel manager if we had something to eat could we get a drink. Of course, we got a drink and nobody passed any heed until we ordered seven steaks. The patrons did not mind the drinks but the steaks put people off as that was a time when one was supposed to fast on Good Friday. Then one went to the service.

On the way home from Mass on a Sunday, one would meet fellows who asked what the priest had said. That went on every Sunday. When I think about those times and compare them to today, we have a completely different approach to pubs and alcohol.

I had a pub. I absolutely agree with Senator Leyden in this regard. I was delighted to have a day off on Good Friday and Christmas Day. One could wash down the pub and it was a great day to have off. Most of the pubs, especially in rural areas do not open seven days a week. They are not open for 12 or 13 hours a day. They may open from Wednesday or Thursday to Sunday. Good Friday is not the special day for the publican as it was in times past. It makes absolute sense to open. I agree the wishes of the employees have not been taken on board. I certainly think this angle should be looked at but it is very good for the tourists coming to Dublin.

The proposed change in the licensing laws is a step in separating church and State. I will be supporting the Bill. Another factor is that a pub is a controlled environment. There is an issue with people drinking at home as there are no measures of the amount of alcohol consumed and alcohol is cheaper. We must address the question of people being able to buy so much alcohol for what it costs in the off-licence. People are more mature and confident than they were 30 or 40 years ago, when one needed the gardaí to clear the pubs every night of the week. We have a better attitude to drink, but we still have a long way to go. In other countries, one does hear the howls and the screams that one hears on the streets of any town in Ireland. We have come quite a bit in the past number of years.