Lapgate fails to call time on Dáil bar drinks

Booze-loving TDs have been tipped the wink to carry on drinking until all hours despite the public outrage sparked by the Lapgate controversy.

The notorious incident — in which Cork TD Tom Barry pulled Fine Gael colleague Áine Collins down onto his lap in the early hours of the morning as deputies voted on X-case legislation — sparked global headlines and highlighted the Dáil’s drink culture.

But calls for a clampdown on alcohol-fuelled late night sittings have been ignored by the Committee on Procedure and Privileges (CPP) which holds sway over the two Oireachtas bars.