Turn off Dáil taps

THAT our public representatives have been permitted, for so long, to run up bills in the bars of Dáil Éireann is patently ridiculous. That this ludicrous situation has now been addressed, with TDs and senators now forced to provide credit card details in advance so that ‘tabs’ for alcohol will become a thing of the past, is a positive development that is long overdue.

On a more fundamental, yet related, point, however, it remains somewhat bewildering why such TDs and senators are practically the only workers in the country with alcohol on tap in their place of work. Why, indeed, should they have access to a bar at all while they are at work?

Frankly, if any TD finds his or her job so easy and unchallenging that they can drink alcohol while carrying out their duties on our behalf, then the answer is simple – they need to find a different means of employment.