asked the Minister for Health the agreement, if any, which was arrived at between him and the alcoholic drink interests regarding the severe curtailment of alcoholic drink advertisments.
Ceisteanna—Questions. Oral Answers. - Alcoholic Drink Advertisements.
24.
The consultations which I initiated with the alcoholic drink interests are continuing.
Could the Minister give us any idea of the length of time needed before he comes to some sort of finality about it? Can the Minister give us any indication as to how he is getting on in view of the fact that the money spent in the last three or four years has risen from something like £16,000 to nearly £200,000? It is rising with the nearly pandemic nature of alcoholism among adolescents and alcoholics. Surely it is a matter of great urgency.
It is a matter on which I should like to see progress. There is far too much advertising of alcoholic products throughout the community, both in quantity and quality. It is a very persuasive and seductive type of advertising. I have begun work in the area but it will be a continuing, on-going process to try to, perhaps, increasingly improve the situation. I would not expect it to be possible to achieve any major restrictions initially. The Deputy probably knows that my efforts at present are concentrated in the tobacco advertising area which is fairly difficult.
It is hard to know which is the more serious, tobacco or alcohol, but the Minister's reply is at its most endearingly platitudinous. What is he going to do about it?
What did the Deputy do when he was Minister for Health?
The Minister should not have to ask that question. He is now Minister for Health. I think most people will agree that I did quite a lot.
I am doing something which has not been attempted before in the history of the Department.
(Interruptions.)
Has the Minister power to do it? Is it not a fact that the Minister as Minister for Finance had a vested interest in the continued use of these sources of wealth and he still has that vested interest in the continuation of the expenditure of enormous sums on drink?
It is very easy for the Deputy to come here from time to time and attack me because I am not doing enough. The Deputy might, on the other hand, try to give me more support in what I am trying to do. That might be more responsible on his part.
The Minister has the power. We have given him the power and he is doing nothing with it.
I have no statutory power to control advertising of alcohol.
We will give it to the Minister.
The Deputy hops from one statement to another. He said I have the power. I am telling him, and he should know, that I have no statutory power to control advertising of alcohol.
The Government have a majority of 20 Deputies in the House and if they want it——
Question No. 25. Deputy Browne knows that argument is not in order.
(Interruptions).
The Deputy is not prepared to give any credit for any of the progressive things that have been done. He is only interested in coming in here and launching these bitter personal attacks on me——
I have not mentioned the Minister's name.
——and I do not think the Deputy is doing the cause which he purports to support any good by these attacks.
The Minister keeps talking about this but does nothing about it.
The Deputy has a monopoly on that sort of thing.