Alcohol spend rises 1.2% to €6.3bn despite recession

People in Ireland are spending more money on alcohol despite the chronic financial crisis that continues to grip the nation, official figures have revealed.

While many reined in their spending on things like clothing, transport, and communication last year, people were less thrifty with booze.

CSO figures showed around €6.36bn was spent on alcohol — up 1.2% from the year before. That accounted for around 7.7% of total personal expenditure of €82.63bn on goods and services.