Diageo has secured the go-ahead for its €25m plan to construct a new distillery at its St James’s Gate base in Dublin for its new premium blended Irish whiskey, Roe & Co.

An exhibition dedicated to Guinness employees who fought in the First World War was opened by broadcaster Gay Byrne in Dublin yesterday.

In his recent speech at the opening of a new Guinness production facility at St James’s Gate, Dublin, Taoiseach Enda Kenny lauded the contribution of the drinks industry to the economy in terms of employment, export earnings, purchasing of raw materials, and the tourist sector.