Brian Dooley of the Advertisers Association of Ireland (AAI) has spoken to the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Health and Children on the Public Health (Alcohol) Bill about the proposed restrictions on the marketing of alcohol.
He began by asking for better clarification on the finer points of the bill on behalf of the AAI, so that it could “be in a better position to assess overall implications and comment accordingly.”
He went on to explain the AAI position the proposal to restrict alcohol advertising on TV and radio to evening hours, observing that it would result in a loss to Irish broadcasters only, and fails to recognise that many children watch TV after 9pm.
The AAI also believes that the restrictions on outdoor advertising would affect spirit brands, which are already banned from Irish TV stations.
“These restrictions could also have a very serious impact on the outdoor media and creative sector,” Dooley added, expressing similar doubt about restrictions in newspapers and magazines.
“Once again, restrictions within the print sector will inevitably result in a negative impact and we would ask the question, what is such a proposal likely to achieve?”
He also added that Ireland has on of the most comprehensive codes on content and placement of advertising in the world, before summarising the AAI position.
“We are potentially concerned that plans to impose further restrictions could be counterproductive. We believe that a wide stakeholder response to alcohol misuse in this country is what is required, rather than a random selection of measures.”
Dooley clarified that the AAI is not against measures that are fairly assessed and can be monitored, instead it objects to “measures for the sake of measures”.
“So when considering any new measures or restrictions, could I please ask you to think about the questions; ‘what is this likely to achieve?’ and ‘will it make a difference?’”
He concluded, “We believe that everyone should play their part. The industry must act accordingly, governments legislate fairly, consumers must behave responsibly”.
© 2015 - Checkout Magazine by Jenny Whelan.
