No rush over the border envisaged with minimum alcohol pricing, Government insists
'Younger people are engaging in a lot of binge drinking, we've got the third highest adolescent rate of drinking anywhere in the world,' Health Minister Stephen Donnelly said.
The Government does not envisage a rush over the border to Northern Ireland for cheap alcohol, when minimum unit pricing kicks in next January.
Speaking to mark the Cabinet decision to introduce minimum pricing, Health Minister Stephen Donnelly and Tánaiste Leo Varadkar said international evidence does not support such a move of people.
Concerns have been expressed that a failure by the Stormont Assembly to move in tandem with the republic will lead to an exodus over the border.
Mr Donnelly said the lack of a coordinated approach is certainly a legitimate concern for people living in border regions. He said one of the reasons the Government was waiting until January was to give time for people to adapt.
Mr Varadkar said the Dublin Government would be “putting pressure” on the North to follow suit.
Mr Donnelly insisted the measure was being introduced “because there is powerful evidence this works”, citing reductions in alcohol usage in Glasgow in recent years.
The Tánaiste expects minimum unit pricing to save lives. He said it was not targeted towards most drinkers, but the "heaviest drinkers" and "those who tend to seek out the cheapest alcohol".
Mr Donnelly said the new law is targeting harmful drinking.
“Younger people are engaging in a lot of binge drinking, we've got the third highest adolescent rate of drinking anywhere in the world, which ultimately is leading to addiction [and] long-term health issues. It is leading to mental health issues. The bill is targeting people and it is targeting the kind of alcohol consumption associated with people in addiction,” Mr Donnelly said.
Under the bill, a minimum unit price of 10c per gram of alcohol will come into force, which will set a floor price beneath which alcohol cannot legally be sold. The minimum price is determined by and is directly proportionate to the amount of pure alcohol in the drink.
A study in medical journal in March 2019 showed that in 2018, there was an 80% increase in the number of children under-16 admitted to Irish hospitals because of alcohol intoxication.
In total, 36 children were treated in 2018 compared to 20 such cases in 2017.
Professor Siobhan MacHale, consultant liaison psychiatrist at Beaumont Hospital, said she and her colleagues had seen a three-fold increase in alcohol-related presentations to Beaumont Hospital emergency department over a 10-year period, 2005-2015.
“I, along with emergency department, hepatology and psychiatry colleagues in Beaumont Hospital, greatly welcome and strongly support MUP as a targeted public health measure to help those most vulnerable in our society to minimise alcohol-related harm.”
Prof McHale cited several cases of the impact of alcohol, including one of a mother in her 40s on a medical ward with alcohol-related brain damage, who doesn’t recognise her 12-year-old child.
The Irish Medical Organisation (IMO) strongly welcomed the the Government's decision to approve the commencement of Section 11 of the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018 and to introduce minimum unit pricing on the sale of alcohol in Ireland.
Dr Ina Kelly, president of the IMO, said the decision was a key public health intervention that would help in the ongoing battle against alcohol misuse.
She said the IMO had been advocating for a number of years in favour of measures to reduce the level of alcohol consumption and binge drinking, particularly among young people, in Ireland.
- Tesco Imperial vodka 70cl: now €19.59 – will cost
- Huzzar vodka 70cl: €19 –
- Beefeater Dry Gin 70cl: €20 –
- Tesco 4x Can of Lager: €2.64 – or €1.70 per can
- Tesco Carlsberg 20 bottles: €17 – or €1.12 per bottle
- Lidl Bulmers Cider: €12 or 1.50 per can – or €1.78 per can
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