Once again our uneducated Government are using a sledge hammer to crack a nut. When will they learn that price is not the long term solution to this problem. Working in the emergency services I see first hand the impact that drink has on our society and the drain it has on our resources. But I don’t see it as a pricing issue, it is one of education. Take cigarettes for example, numerous years of price hiking has had little effect on consumption and this will be true with alcohol. People will continue to drink no matter what the price as they will find alternative ways of purchasing. It will also push the consumption of alcohol more and more back into peoples homes which is far more dangerous as consumption cannot be controlled as much as it can in a public bar setting.

Let’s not fool ourselves that increases in excise duty on alcohol have any connection with government’s concern about alcoholism. This is purely and simply a tax raising measure.

Stop the cheap pints in the dail bar so the politicians can think straight !!!

Changing the price wont affect anything. What we need to do is change the culture we have in this country! Our idea of having a drink is going out at 7 on a Saturday night and making it home sometime after dawn on Sunday (if we’re lucky). If they really want to make a difference they’d be better off trying to promote a better drinking culture.

Also, eliminated the rush at 1:45 in the night to get 3 shots and 2 pints because the bar is about to close would stop people going from “a bit drunk” to “in a mess”. (Yes, that mean 24 hour drinking). Now where’s me can…

If they do then they should set a maximum limit too to stop greedy publicans from ripping us off!!

More nanny-state bullshit. Raising prices on something you don’t want people to do is just lazy thinking. If you want people to do less of something make the alternatives more attractive.

They want to raise prices to “reduce dependency and abuse of the substance”? That doesn’t work with cigarettes and it doesn’t look like high prices put junkies off illegal drugs either. Yet another measure to make more money from the M1 toll as we all flock to the North.

Drink! Feck !! Aras!

Maybe close the Dail bar too, see if that helps the collective decision making of these overpaid greedy TDs who have No Idea how the real world operates,

Maybe they could just tax the air, and then the poor would die off and leave the rich to their own devices. What a crock ! I think I will go back to brewing my own like i did in the eighties, happy days!!

With this & the VAT you may kiss the border towns goodbye

The price of drink is not related to the Alcohol problem in this country, if it was we would be a nation of tea totalers.
Our government sees a problem that has been there for centuries and like any pusher /dealer they want their cut of the action, in fact if everybody stopped drinking and smoking they’d find some reason to tax the tin of beans because of the CO2 emissions released after consumption.

I’ve never fallen over drunk, I’ve never had my stomach pumped and I’ve never had any alcohol related issues. I love a drink at home and in the pub too, beer wine and spirits. Why should I be penalised by a minimum price for alcohol because of the stupidity of others?

This is purely another way to extract more taxes. It’s time for this lot to abandon ship. Enough is enough!

they should set a maximum price more like

No, if there is a family that has a problem drinker that earns 300euro a week and they spend 200euro a week on drink regardless, the price goes up and they spend 250euro a week on drink that just leaves less money for the rest for bills and food.

Cultural change is needed! Increasing the price just looks good it does absolutely nothing to deal with the actual problem.

The vintners lobby is so strong in this country and we also have a very immature attitude to drinking

The price of alcohol in Ireland is already amongst the highest in Europe, only the Nordic countries have higher prices without any noticeable impact on consumption.
If we seriously want to reduce alcohol consumption then we have to tackle our drinking culture.
The goverment could make a start by closing the Bars in Leinster House and forbid the consumption of alcohol in all state, state agency and semi-states offices and buildings. Request the no alcohol is served at any function were a government minister is invited. Outlaw the presence of children under the age of 16 after 8 pm in pubs bars and licensed restaurants.
Toughen the penalties on drink driving, ie automatic 24 month ban for all drivers caught over the new limits.
Encourage more bona fide cafe bars so that the consumption of alcohol becomes more associated
with the consumption of food.
Strictly enforce the ban on consuming alcohol on the streets and other public places.

Of course none of this will happen because of the outcry from pubs, sports clubs and the like. We are all in favour of reducing alcohol consumption amongst the young, as long as it does not require us to change our own behaviour.

Anyone who has travelled has seen places where drink prices are very low and these places don’t have the drink problems we have. Help, education and a change in attitude is what’s needed.

Brew Your Own sales rocket…

What’s the betting that no-one from Government will read any of these comments, or bother to look at the poll.

Bring back prohibition…. I would love to be a beer baron and have the likes of Rex Bannor trying to find me! I would set up a pub and cleverly disguise it as a pet shop..

A stupid move that if passed that will cause many jobs all over the country to be lost between hotels, bars, shops and indeed in the breweries as well. It will also punish law abiding citizens financially for the crimes of others. More focus should be placed on the education to the dangers of drink/drugs and putting in place facilities to combat the boredom which often is the cause of much underage drinking.

Alcohol is an inelastic good therefore people will consume roughly the same. This will probably hurt those worst off in society most, but surely FG Knows this?

Hands off my 4 4 5 dutch gold!!

Absolutely NOT! Alcohol is already overpriced in this country!

Nah. Though I would have thought that a minimum-price limit would affect offies and supermarkets much more than pubs?

Why should ordinary people have to pay the price for those who abuse alcohol?

Raising the price of alcohol does not work as a deterrent. We pay some of the highest prices in Europe already for a pint and it has not changed drinking patterns.
It seems to me that the government want to be seen to be doing something about a problem rather than doing tackling the issue in any real way. How to tackle the issue properly is the hard part, taxing is just for show.
We have seen, time and time again, that changing price structure just encourages people to drink at home before going out rather than drinking less in general. Our attitude is the issue, not the price.

If people want to drink themselfs to death so be it, they will do it anyway this new plan will just make more people head up north to get there gargle. Roll on 2012 and the end of the world

How do publicans have a right to complain? Go into the center of town and you will see what the “rip-off republic” is all about…
Every time I head down the country I am shocked at the prices of pints compared to Dublin. I too would be in favor of this cap if the cap at both ends!

seriously though the problem is not the alcohol its the mentality.
in korea and some other asian countries they drink equally as much if not more but you never see people fighting,rowing or trashing stuff .I lived in Korea for 4 years and not once did I have a run in with a Korean even though there are a majority of people who dont like foreigners there.Over on this side of the pond in Ireland no saturday night goes by without some fight or damage to property,some body acting the tough guy or some idiot being insulting and rude trying to get a rise out of someone for no reason at all or throwing their weight around trying to get everything their own way .
Even in Sydney I saw some of this carry on and unfortunately met my fairshare of ignorant Irish people and those who were going over the top trying to live up to the drunken irish tag which left me feeling embarrassed to be an Irishman .
Dont get me wrong I am patriotic and proud to be Irish as the next person but the behaviour of some people in this country cause a whole lot of hassle for the rest of us .

There’s an assumption in that logic that alcohol abuse is a rational “lifestyle choice”. Meanwhile, in the real world….

Love the drink, hate the drunk.

F**k it…….I’m going out for a pint.

By legal definition people who are over 18 are classified as adults-it is also the legal age for someone to drink alcohol.As an adult you are deemed to be able to make your own decisions and the decision to drink(or not)alcohol,how much,what type and where? So why now do people think that the Govt should “do something” about problem drinking and there is a move to increase the prices to deter drinking. Yes, it will deter people from going to the Pub and buying alcohol(in ROI at least) and drive business north. Yes, problem drinking is a problem for a minority but the majority are now to be punished so some people may possibly drink less. Perversely those with alcohol addiction will always find the extra money to feed their addiction so even as a health measure it is doomed to failure.Grow up Ireland
Keep prices as they are-a pint of plain is your only man

Well yes and no, if they were smart about it, they’d raise the cost of buying alcohol in the supermarket but lower it in pubs and clubs. This would get people out of their homes and into bars, restaurants and nightclubs and thus spending money. Exactly what the government and the vintners want!

How about setting a maximum price!!

ok – i’m assuming here that the only tangible issue we have here is the cost to the state of dealing with drunken antics and the cost to the HSE of pumping stomachs etc?

surely the solution here is better policing and fines for drunken disorderly or even say for getting kicked out of a nightclub? additionally there could be a surcharge on people who are brought to hospital comatosed drunk?

i’m completely against a nanny state policy of taxing drink etc – but if there is a real cost to this then let the people who create the cost pay for it directly?

on the other hand if all this aims to be is a new tax raising measure then i take my hat off to them – it wont stop me buying booze so it’ll be most effective!

Setting a minimum price means that the Market is a monopoly of protected large suppliers and a increase in vat take. There is not one ounce of concern or sentiment towards a civilians health or wellbeing in the proposal.

Ah would ya’s ever fuck off and leave me with my little pleasures. There’ll be a tax on smiling soon if we keep things up.

They should just let the free market determine the price and stop meddling in everything

when is the vote to get rid of the seanad

This would drive our pubs into the ground and in effect destoy our culture that is recognised around the world.

Legalise Marijuana.

It is any wonder we have over populated villages and towns with pubs. Or by the looks of it, towns and villages are built around pubs.

Part of the problem that I see is that those in power hold back alcohol too. Walk into any Tesco or shop at 10pm and it doesn’t matter who you are or what age you are you cannot buy alcohol. This doesn’t help the drinking culture in this country.

Just keep increasing the tax on cigarettes!

Isn’t there a very obvious basic common sense compromise to be found here – bring back the order where alcohol can never be sold at less then cost.
The sales device being used by supermarkets currently , in particular, to get customers into their stores, by selling alcohol at considerably under cost, pushes up the price of food items to recover the % margin which they have sacrificed and lost on the alcohol sale!
The resultant will bring down the cost of food in Ireland!

The abuse of drink is destroying lives and even ending some young lives. There is an increase in liver damage in those as young as in the thirties and numerous serious illnesses like mental illness, heart disease and cancer, all either caused totally or in part by alcohol abuse. On top of that fighting, violence and misery on families and street violence after pubs close. You can throw in drink driving and poor work performance as well as loss of jobs. I think the abuse of drink is a huge burden on the exchequer and should be difficult for young people to get their hands on it.

hahahah a pet shop pub .Can I have a pint of smithwicks and a bag of doggie biscuits please.

I live about 6 miles from the border, so I couldnt see myself spending a penny on drink here if they did introduce a minimum limit that I viewed as even slighty too expensive.

This is a shambles. I know the government are stuck for a few quid but this kinda goes a little far. Nanny state of the highest order. I’m more and more considering leaving this country over the past few months. It’s becoming less and less a nice place to live.

This item has been put into the headlines to take our minds of more important issues. On this page everyone is concerned with the price of alcohol, there are more pressing things happening in this country. The way the people are talking anyone would be led to believe that people were non stop running out of all the supermarkets with these slabs of beer… Not so my local supermarket has these price promotions and I have never seen anybody buy alcohol never mind slabs of beer… Get Real People

I think many might be reading this wrong!! They are talking about a “floor price” – a price it can not go below! Not a price increase! When you take Waterford City for example… 99% of bars/clubs are offering young students of 17/18+ years of age drinks of their choice for only €2 all drinks all night long. It’s an utter disgrace in the city on student nights! Just my opinion!

NO THEY SHOULD MAKE LISENCE HOLDERS BE WHAT THEY USED TO BE, FIT AND PROPER PERSONS TO HOLD A LICENCE, SUPERMARKETS got a licence to sell alcohol through backhanders to dirty politicians (link the 2 if u want) there is people from john o gods on the tills in these supermarkets (great to see) selling alcohol and 10 year olds bagging it for them, Mr Lidl etc does not care who he sells to, he will even sell at a loss to tempt customers in, beer and alcohol should be left in the hands of the people that have it as their main core business, pubs and off-licences, fit and proper people to hold a licence

Ban the booze, nation of drunks laughed at the world over, kop on to yourselves, lose the catholic shadow, enjoy this beautiful life without fuzzing your skulls and lining greedy drug dealers’ pockets :)

Are they referring to putting a floor on the price in pub drink, off licence drink, or both?

I would trade extended trading hours in bars and clubs for a minimum price… It would likely not effect Dublin bars and clubs, only crates of cheap beer and boxes of wine in Tesco/Lidl and cheap student drink promos.