Independent Alliance raise concerns over new alcohol legislation
The new bill instructs that alcohol be separated from the rest of the premises by means of a physical barrier, through which alcohol products and advertising are not readily visible to the public.
It has caused considerable anger within Fine Gael, with junior health minister Marcella Corcoran-Kennedy under fire to drop the plan.
The bill also requires that alcohol should only be on sale in a premises in an area which the public does not have to pass through in order to gain access to, or make purchase of, products other than alcohol products.
Last night, members of the Independent Alliance, while acknowledging the benefits of other parts of the bill, said that the obligation to have a physical barrier between alcohol and other items in a shop may cause considerable hardship and financial pressure to small shop owners around the country.
The group said that this is an additional cost for small business owners and raised questions as to whether it would actually reap any dividends as well as questioning how this proposed regulation would be policed.
“They have called on junior health minister Marcella Corcoran-Kennedy to address their concerns,” a spokeswoman for the Alliance said.
