Support Your Local – Five pillars
'Support Your Local' campaign calls on government and state agencies to support drinks industry
Print12 March 2015
Members of the Irish drinks and hospitality industry recently launched the Support Your Local 2015 campaign. The campaign is about highlighting the significant financial and social contribution made by the Irish drinks and hospitality industry.
At the launch event, the Support Your Local 2015 policy document was released, outlining the five pillars on which businesses across the country in the hospitality and drinks industry can thrive: tourism and hospitality; competitiveness; economic contribution; communities and addressing alcohol misuse.
Pictured at the launch of the Support Your Local 2015 campaign, (left to right) NOffLA members, Judith and Susan Boyle, of John Boyle Ltd., Kildare
Tourism and hospitality: The drinks industry is a vital part of Ireland’s tourism offering. ‘Support Your Local…’ is calling on the government and state agencies to support members of the drinks industry as they develop new and exciting attractions for tourists and work with them as they strive to improve the offer for tourists and promote Ireland’s positive image internationally.
Competitiveness: Successive tax increases on alcohol, which have directly added 28 cent to the price of a pint since 2011 have eroded confidence in the industry and placed Ireland in a position where it has the highest priced alcohol in Europe. ‘Support Your Local’ is calling on the government to cut excise on beer and spirits by 10 cent and to cut excise on wine by 50 cent.
Economic contribution: The drinks industry makes a significant economic contribution – with 92,000 jobs throughout the country reliant on the sector.‘Support Your Local’ is calling on the government to bring alcohol taxation levels in line with European norms to facilitate Irish firms that are competing for international investment by reducing excise levels, particularly in the burgeoning Irish whiskey sector.
Communities: The hospitality industry is the hub of the local community and a vital part of the tourism infrastructure. ‘Support Your Local’ is calling on the government to establish a taskforce to support these valuable local businesses and to work to implement measures to ensure their survival.
Addressing alcohol misuse: The drinks industry is keen to work with the government to address the misuse of alcohol in society. The industry is calling on the government to address the sale of cheap alcohol, introduce a statutory ban on price-based advertising and introduce statutory codes to regulate the merchandising of alcohol through the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill.Members of the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland have already signed a pledge identifying a number of key policy areas that will make an impact on alcohol abuse – many of which are included in the bill.
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