The Chairperson of Alcohol Action Ireland has said he does not believe the issue of health warnings on alcohol needs to be “examined again”, despite a claim from the Minister for Finance that it may be necessary following the introduction of trade tariffs by the United States.
Yesterday, Minister Paschal Donohoe told RTÉ’s This Week that the introduction of the health warning labels would have to be “carefully examined again” by the Government considering the increased pressure on the drinks industry due to US tariffs and the need to maintain competitiveness.
However, AAI Chairman Professor Frank Murray has said the labelling has nothing to do with tariffs and will have no impact on the export of alcohol as it only applies to products sold in Ireland.
Speaking on RTÉ’s Morning Ireland, he said that labeling is a health issue and not an economic one.
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“I don’t believe that it needs to be re-examined. It was examined in enormous detail at national, and indeed at EU level, when it was first proposed and the legislation got through despite the huge lobbying activity of the alcohol industry, which is an enormously powerful industry,” Prof Murray said.
“I think the most important thing to remember about it is that the alcohol health warning labels are a health issue. They’re not an economic issue and that they’ve got nothing to do with their exports and tariffs.
“This is entirely for the Irish market. So, what’s what we’re seeing from the alcohol industry is lobbying and, I believe, misleading the Government in relation to this. So, this will have no impact on exports or on tariffs or anything like that.”
The labeling is important because many people do not know about the risks from alcohol, particularly cancers, according to Prof Murray.
“People don’t know of the risks of alcohol, particularly cancers, and they don’t really understand what cirrhosis is, many of them as well. And there’s widespread use of alcohol during pregnancy across Europe, including in Ireland,” he said.
He added that the cancer warning labels are important because “people understand it and because it’s true.
Prof Murray said the Public Health (Alcohol) Act was introduced “after much discussion” in 2018 and labeling is not due to come into effect until 2026 so “there is no excuse anymore for delaying”.
The labeling was put in place “because of the problems that we have with alcohol and because of the fact that alcohol use is widespread in Ireland and many people don’t know what the harmful effects of alcohol are,” he said.
He said he would argue that what we are doing “has been very tardy and it’s really time to get on with it”.
