Call for more controls on alcohol sales
Businesses demanded stricter controls on the sale of booze through off-licences today in a bid to tackle late night trouble on the streets of Dublin.
Paul McElearney, chairman of the Dublin City Business Association (DCBA), warned many problems arising at night-time were directly related to alcohol.
The association recommended a series of stringent measures be implemented to tackle the problem including raising the legal age limit for buying booze through off-licence sales to 21 years.
Mr McElearney called for local authorities to be granted a greater role for refusing and restricting licences for off-sales traders for certain premises, including closure during the day-time on St Patrick’s Day.
The association, which represents the retailers and property owners of Dublin city centre who employ around 25,000 people, also called for a ban on alcohol advertising.
“Our capital city at night-time has become menacing, dirty and ugly. During the day and early evening the city is a welcoming, chic and atmospheric place to be and one of the safest and most popular cities in the world,” Mr McElearney said.
Mr McElearney told an international conference in Dublin that every person with a licence to sell alcohol has a civic responsibility and duty towards society and communities.
He claimed off-licence businesses have passed their responsibilities onto parents and gardaí.
“We want action taken to regulate and control their trading,” he said.
Mr McElearney said: “We support Minister McDowell’s Intoxicating Liquor Bill, the development of a cafe society and the Lord Mayor’s Commission on Crime and Policing and believe stricter action needs to be taken in managing the off-sales trading and promotion of alcohol in Ireland.”
Mr McElearney said a recent survey from the association had found people were concerned about entering the city centre at night, citing fears for their personal safety and encountering aggression.
