Joe O'Reilly (Fine Gael) | Oireachtas source

I join in the tributes to Senator Lawless for introducing legislation in the House, which is a good thing to do. He made the point that a publican had the freedom to opt out of this in the sense that an individual publican might not necessarily open. That is fair enough to a point, but there will be pressure and a commercial imperative on publicans. What is happening up the street can become a difficulty and they could tend to lose customers, so it is putting them in an unfair position.

I understood we would have a proper Report Stage. I have a few difficulties with this legislation. That we are starting to try to deal with the alcohol question is at variance with health policy in general. That sends the wrong subliminal message and it is a mistake in that respect. I genuinely believe it offends many, although not all, people from all the Christian traditions in this country who have dearly held religious beliefs around the fact there are two sacred days in the calendar, Christmas Day and Good Friday. It offends the sensibilities of a number of people in this regard. I genuinely believe those people's sensibilities, sensitivities and feelings in this matter and their rights of citizenship should not be ignored or cavalierly regarded. I regret that. I have an amount of anecdotal evidence to support it.

I would be concerned about the issue of workers' rights, which has been well articulated by colleagues. Traditionally, Good Friday was a day off for the people who worked in the bar sector. I hope they will receive adequate remuneration. Some of them may have personal difficulty with this measure. Traditionally, it was a day of rest. Those two big days marked the Christian calendar. They were part of our Christian tradition in Ireland.

There is a mythology that in some way this measure will assist tourism.What assists tourism in Ireland is our distinctiveness, our native culture, our difference, our Christian values and our traditions. Maintaining our identity attracts far more people to the country than shredding that identity on the altar of naked commercialism and constantly seeking to fumble in the greasy till and add the ha'pence to the pence.

Senator Leyden is right in saying that the rural pub is under threat. It is an endangered species which offers its own problems in rural areas. It has its own difficulties in terms of the tourism sector and the quality of life of people who live in isolation. While he is right about that, opening on two further days a year is not the way to resolve the matter. From talking to them, I know that the great majority of rural publicans do not want to open on Good Friday. They would prefer the status quo. This is putting them under further economic pressure with costs. It was a day on which their premises were closed and on which they carried out repairs or whatever. Now they will be under commercial pressure from their peers and their neighbours to open and put in staff for a day, which, in most instances, will not yield a return.

I think more reflection ins required in respect of the Bill; we are rushing into it too much. We need to stand back a little. It is too easy to jump on every fad. With regard to the Minister in some way improving in our position, I think people want us to keep our tradition and culture, and stand up for what is right. Many people outside the House have genuine and sincerely held religious views on Good Friday, which is very sacred to them. I am not sure that we should not respect it a bit more.