Vol. 486 No. 2
10 Mr. Ferris asked the Minister for Health and Children if he will give consideration to the banning of advertising for alcohol in view of the high social and health costs associated with the prevalence of alcohol abuse in this country; and if he will make a statement on the matter. [2218/98]
The health and social costs of alcohol abuse are well established and concern about the impact of such abuse led to the development of a national alcohol policy, which was launched in September, 1996.
The National Alcohol Policy was drawn up after an extensive consultative process and is directed at reducing the prevalence of alcohol related problems through an emphasis on moderation in alcohol consumption. Because alcohol problems are multidimensional the action plan sets out multisectoral solutions requiring both environmental and individual strategies. The Government adopted the policy, which is now being implemented. It will take some time to fully implement the plan, and it will be some years before its impact can be measured. In the meantime it is unlikely that I will be proposing to Government any action which is not part of the policy. The wide range of initiatives and measures in the Policy's Action Plan does not include a ban on advertising of alcohol. I do not, therefore, intend to suggest to Government the introduction of such a ban at this time.
