I move amendment No. 1:—
In paragraph (a), line 24, to delete "and" where it occurs secondly, and add "derived from cereals grown in the State; and".
Presumably, the main objective of this Bill is to define the name "Irish whiskey" for the export market. That is a very laudable and a very desirable object, but one wonders why the sole limitation in paragraph (a) should be the location of the distilling plant. That is one limitation—it has to be in the State. The second limitation is that the whiskey must be obtained by distillation from a mash of malt and cereals. The purpose of my amendment is quite clear. The processor, the distiller, may be interested in having the advantage of the name "Irish whiskey" associated with his plant in this country, but it seems to me, more especially nowadays when it is popular to say: "Buy Irish"—and I believe this is one of the weeks in which we say "Buy Irish"—that the phrase should apply equally to the manufacturer. I suggest that some amendment in this form should be incorporated to ensure that the cereals used will be Irish grown cereals.
If one looks back at recent history, one finds that, say, from 1928 until the disturbance caused by the war, considerable quantities of barley were imported into this country. I do not claim for a moment that this barley was all imported for distillers' use, but considerable quantities were imported, and even since the war, if my memory serves me correctly, some sort of malt came from Chile in large quantities in 1937. It seems to me desirable, when this country can produce the necessary cereals for making Irish whiskey, that there should be incorporated in the definition not only the location of the plant and the nature of the mash but also the provision that the cereals should come from this country. Would I be in order in taking my three amendments together or had I better deal separately with them?