Robbie Gallagher (Fianna Fail) | Oireachtas source

I would like to address the unfortunate confusion which seems to have arisen around outdoor dining. With the good weather, it is very heartening to see so many people out and about and our towns and villages alive with people sitting and enjoying a bite to eat and maybe a glass or two of wine or beer in the great outdoors. It is a lovely, heartening, uplifting sight to see.

Unfortunately, confusion has now arisen about the legality of the public space some pubs and restaurants are using to serve alcohol in some instances. There is a question mark over whether that is legal or not. The Garda, or maybe more accurately, the law of the land, would seem to state that unless a licence has been obtained from the courts to serve alcohol for consumption in a given public space area, the Garda and the law of the land are saying it is illegal. The Department of Justice on the other hand is saying we should not worry too much about it and that it is down to the discretion of an individual member of An Garda Síochána. Quite frankly, that is simply not good enough. Businesses have been through hell over the last 18 months and are trying to get back on their feet again. When they open their doors of an evening, is the future of their business that evening going to depend on the discretion of a member of An Garda Síochána? That is not good enough. It is not fair on the business and not fair on the individual member of An Garda Síochána. What the word "discretion" boils down to is "turn a blind eye". Thus if a member of the public makes a complaint to a member of An Garda Síochána about a premises serving alcohol with no licence and the garda ignores it, that member of the public may very well report that member to the Garda Síochána Ombudsman Commission, GSOC, and the member will be under investigation. The simple solution to the problem is to issue a special exemption for a limited period of time to all the businesses concerned to take away the confusion and let everyone know exactly where they stand.