Ways to expand and progress the pub sector in Dublin will be discussed during a special conference toda

New Year’s Eve cheer will be thin on the ground in many watering holes as publicans warn 2013 could see time called on 800 pubs.

The Vintners Federation of Ireland has said 10c increase on the price of a pint will cost up to 10,000 jobs in the sector.

Vintners are calling for the introduction of a 15% tax on alcohol sold in supermarkets and off licences.

A Cork publican is calling on the Government to step in to rescue the hospitality sector after a new report showed a drop of 7.2% in bar sales last year.

GIVEN the success of last year’s Irish Open, repeating the feat this summer would be a tall order in anyone’s book but Killarney Golf & Fishing Club general manager Maurice O’Meara is optimistic there is still room for improvement.

THE posturing of the Vintners Federation of Ireland and their lobbying counterparts towards the reduced drink-driving limits contained in the Road Traffic Bill is pathetic.

Pubs in Limerick have been receiving calls from Cork, Westmeath and Clare to establish what time they were opening at today.

A Catholic priest has said Good Friday has been forever changed by a court ruling which allows pubs to open on the holy day for the first time.

Vintners have added their voice to protests over the staging of a major rugby fixture on Good Friday - calling for it to be rescheduled.

THE headline on Dan Buckley’s feature article in your issue of August 28 – ‘Creaming the profits’ – totally misleads your readers about the true state of the pub business. Far from “creaming” profits, most pubs in the Vintners Federation of Ireland (VFI) are losing money, as recent independent research showed.

The Vintners Federation of Ireland is today calling for Government measures to offset a decline in the pub trade.

THE Competition Authority is seeking to have the chiefs executive of two publicans’ organisations brought before the High Court to explain why they should not be jailed and their organisations’ assets seized for alleged contempt arising from their announcement of a drinks price freeze.

Thousands of jobs have been lost with the closure of 1,500 pubs since the turn of the decade, it emerged today.

The two organisations representing publicans in Ireland have said 1,500 pubs have closed and thousands of jobs have been lost in the industry here since 2001.

The Vintners Federation of Ireland is expected to oppose calls for a reduction in drink-driving limits at its annual conference in Carlow tomorrow.

BINGE DRINKING by youngsters is being fuelled by the sale of cheap alcohol in supermarkets and garages, according to the president of the Vintners’ Federation of Ireland.

STUDENTS launching an anti-drink driving campaign today are looking for a sponsor to take their initiative nationwide.

PUBLICANS and the Office of Tobacco Control (OTC) have clashed over the economic effects of the smoking ban.

BLUE CORRIG, carrying the colours of the late Dick Forristal, recorded a shock win in the listed Ardilaun House Hotel Oyster Stakes at Galway yesterday.

THE introduction of café bars in Ireland will do nothing to tackle the problem of binge drinking, according to a leading publicans’ organisation.

The Licensed Vintners' Association has said the Government's plans to introduce new licences for so-called "café bars" will do nothing to prevent binge-drinking.

THE introduction of continental-style cafe bars will do nothing to tackle the problem of binge drinking, publicans warned yesterday.

VINTNERS in Galway have voted to fully support a fellow publican who is mounting a legal challenge to the smoking ban.

The Licensed Vintners Association has claimed the workplace smoking ban has led directly to the loss of 2,000 jobs in Dublin.

THE country’s largest publicans’ organisation is to provide funds to fight cases taken against colleagues they consider are unfairly prosecuted under the legislation imposing the workplace smoking ban.

The Vintners Federation of Ireland is due to hold a meeting in Portlaoise today to discuss the implementation of the workplace smoking ban.

The price of a pint is to increase by six cent.

PUBLICANS are threatening to withhold VAT payments if the ban on smoking in the workplace goes ahead in January.

Almost one thousand publicans from outside Dublin are vowing to continue their fight against the imposition of the ban on smoking in the workplace.

PUBLICANS want Health Minister Micheál Martin to ban the sale of tobacco products all over the country, rather than just putting the onus on them to prevent smoking in the workplace.

The Vintners Federation of Ireland is claiming that pub owners won't be able to enforce the smoking ban and that the Government should ban the sale of tobacco in Ireland instead.

PUBLICANS are on collision course with the Government following Health Minister Micheál Martin’s bottom-line statement that the ban on smoking in the workplace will be applied without fear or favour to all establishments.

The Licensed Vintners Association has said a majority of bar workers supports a compromise solution to the proposed blanket ban on smoking.

The Vintners Federation says ventilation can be highly effective at reducing cigarette smoke.

SHOT drinks like Vodka Slammers, Sidekicks and Bug Reds should be banned to combat binge drinking, the Vintners’ Federation said yesterday.

BLAMING publicans for alcohol abuse is like blaming petrol station owners for road deaths, the Vintners Federation of Ireland said yesterday.

PUBLICANS will step up their campaign of opposition to the planned ban on smoking in pubs when their largest representative body holds its annual conference this week.

There are fresh calls for the introduction of a mandatory identification card.

PUBLICANS’ representatives will be forced to defend the role of pub owners in selling alcohol to under-age drinkers this morning.

Reacting to Mr McCreevy's Budget today, Tadgh O'Sullivan of the Vintners Association insists that Ireland has enough tax on alcohol at the moment.

A spokesperson for Willie O’Dea is insisting that the Junior Minister was given assurances from publicans that the ban on serving travellers was lifted.

PUBLICANS have promised there will be no nationwide blanket ban on serving Travellers following peace talks aimed at resolving the dispute.

The National Consultative Committee on Racism and Interculturalism has condemned the Vintners Federation of Ireland for threatening to ban travellers from 6,000 pubs outside Dublin.