Charlie McConalogue (Donegal North East, Fianna Fail)
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Question 167: To ask the Minister for Justice and Equality his views on whether the sale of alcohol to teenagers is being adequately monitored; and if there are enough deterrents in place. [32501/11]

Alan Shatter (Dublin South, Fine Gael)
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There are robust legal provisions in place relating to the sale of intoxicating liquor to persons under the age of 18 years. Section 31 of the Intoxicating Liquor Act 1988, as amended, contains provisions which prohibit a licensee from selling, or permitting any person from selling, intoxicating liquor to such persons. The Intoxicating Liquor Act 2008 also provides An Garda Síochána with significant additional powers to address the problem of alcohol sales to underage persons. Section 14 allows a Garda who believes with reasonable cause that such a person possesses a bottle or other container containing intoxicating liquor which is being, or is intended to be, consumed by him or her to seize and remove the container. It also makes provision for the test purchasing of alcohol products, and guidelines were issued by the then Minister for Justice and Law Reform in October, 2010 in respect of the procedures to be followed, following consultation with the Garda Commissioner and the Minister for Health and Children. The primary objective of the scheme is to enable An Garda Síochána to target licensed premises which are suspected of engaging in illegal sales to young people. Up to 31 October, 2011, these provisions have been invoked in respect of 119 premises, and offences were detected in respect of 41 of these premises.

Section 8A of the Criminal Justice (Public Order) Act 1994 provides An Garda Síochána with certain powers in relation to persons that are in the possession of intoxicating substance in a place other than a place used as a private dwelling. Incidents of public disorder and anti-social behaviour arising from the abuse of alcohol reported to the Garda authorities are the subject of investigation and dealt with appropriately, including by juvenile or adult caution, fixed charge penalty notices or initiating criminal proceedings. Any persons found engaging in such behaviour will continue to be dealt with appropriately in accordance with the law.

Local Garda management keeps under review patrols and other operational strategies in place, in conjunction with other policing needs of the residents in the area, to ensure optimum use is made of Garda resources and the best possible Garda service is provided to the public. Current policing plans are designed to address issues of crime and public order offences. Community policing is a central feature and core value of policing policy, and current policing strategies are predicated on the prevention of crime, public order offences and anti-social behaviour. This strategy is, and will continue to be, central to the delivery of policing services.