CMO raises concerns over bill to extend pub and nightclub opening hours

Professor Breda Smyth, chief Medical Officer, speaking at the Citizens’ Assembly on Drugs Use.

Chief Medical Officer Breda Smyth has contacted Justice Minister Helen McEntee to raise concerns about new laws to allow nightclubs to open until 6am and pubs until 2.30am.

The intervention by Ms Smyth comes just weeks after the Road Safety Authority (RSA) said that progressing the bill could lead to an increase in road deaths.

Ms McEntee is also facing pressure within Fine Gael to scrap the legislation and the Irish Examiner has learned former justice minister and Tánaiste, MEP Frances Fitzgerald, has also written to Ms McEntee asking for further assessment on the legislation amid concerns it will increase violence, public disorder, and hospital admissions.

The chief medical officer, Road Safety Authority, and Ms McEntee’s party colleagues are calling for a Health Impact Assessment (HIA) of the bill.

In a statement, the Department of Health said Breda Smyth also had the support of Health Minister Stephen Donnelly when writing to Ms McEntee.

A spokesperson for the department said: “The chief medical officer, with the support of the minister for health, wrote to the minister for justice requesting that the minister for justice give further consideration to carrying out a Health Impact Assessment on the Sale of Alcohol Bill."

The latest pushback on the legislation will be welcomed by some TDs and senators in Fine Gael and Fianna Fáil who say there is “no appetite” for the laws.

Part of the new laws include the extension of normal licensing hours of bars and restaurants from 11.30pm to 12.30am, the facilitating of late-night opening of bars to 2.30am, and the extension of nightclub hours to 6am.

Justice Minister Helen McEntee 'continues to engage with various public and voluntary health bodies'. Picture: Gareth Chaney/Collins

A spokesperson for Ms McEntee did not give a commitment to carry out the Health Impact Assessment, but said the department “continues to engage with various public and voluntary health bodies and is committed to considering their views on any potential health implications as the bill progresses".

They added that the minister hopes to bring the legislation to the Oireachtas in the coming months, with hopes to enact it sometime this year.

In her letter to Ms McEntee in October last year, obtained under Freedom of Information, Fine Gael MEP Frances Fitzgerald said while she fully supported the modernisation of the alcohol licensing process in Ireland, an assessment was “critical”.

She wrote: “As you are aware, there is clear evidence from multiple other jurisdictions that increased availability of alcohol leads to a range of harms such as an increase in the levels of domestic and gender-based violence, public disorder, and hospital admissions.

“Given ongoing concerns about public disorder, pressure on Garda resources, and significant demands on health services, I strongly believe that such an assessment should be completed on the Bill before it progresses further.”

Fine Gael TD Charlie Flanagan said he examined the matter during his tenure as justice minister, describing it as "complex".

He said he is against “all-night drinking” and an assessment is needed on road safety, public transport, and on public health consequences.

He added: “There seems to be a clear conflict between the Department of Health and [the Department of] Justice. The Department of Health wants alcohol restricted to the extent we are putting health warnings on a humble bottle of wine and alcohol in supermarkets behind gates, in accordance with public health.

“The Department of Justice, under this legislation, is abdicating a free-for-all.”