John Crown (Independent) | Oireachtas source

I welcome the Minister of State. I look forward to working with him in the years to come. I have a particular interest in health issues. I do not think the Government's thinking, as set out in its strategy, goes far enough. It is time for a little radicalism in its approach. Like most people in this Chamber, I am speaking with the internal conflict of someone who culturally grandfathered himself into the drinking culture of which he is a member. We would all like to think things could be done differently.

I remind Senators that alcohol is an addictive, cancer-causing toxin. That is what it is. I ask them to imagine what would happen if everyone in Ireland stopped drinking alcohol completely tomorrow. It would be a better place. We would have a colossal decrease in the prevalence of cancer of the head, neck, oesophagus, stomach, pancreas, breast, colorectum and the liver. Chronic liver disease would become rather uncommon. Obesity and diabetes, and all the complications associated with them, would decline dramatically. We would have a colossal decrease in violent crime, domestic violence, violence against women and rape. We would have a colossal decrease in road traffic accidents and some decrease in traffic deaths. We would have a major decrease in the use of our accident and emergency departments. We would have a major shortening of the waiting lists for our health facilities. There would be a decrease in absenteeism at work.

Another side of this issue that is not often commented on is the opportunity cost of alcohol consumption. The opportunity cost to society of alcohol consumption is colossal. The money spent by families on alcohol could be spent on food, clothes and education for their children. If the amount of time parents spend drinking were spent parenting, it would have a beneficial impact on educational outcomes and on many of the indices of social decay in our society. There is a colossal opportunity cost for our health service. If we were spending less money on alcohol-related ill-health, we would not have to discuss whether we can afford expensive cancer drugs and expensive drugs for multiple sclerosis.

Several of my colleagues have seemed to suggest that we are somehow in a healthy place in the international alcohol consumption league table.