Boozer King row
Senator slams ‘family’ burger chain serving beer at airport
BURGER King has been slammed for serving booze at its restaurant area in Dublin Airport.
Fine Gael children’s spokeswoman Catherine Noone criticised “oodles of beer” in places where kids are present and called for stricter regulations to be introduced.
The Senator’s calls follows a plea from Ryanair to limit the sales of alcohol before 10am as the airline experienced increasing numbers of passengers boarding early morning flights already drunk.
Ms Noone said: “Recent comments have caused me
CRITIC Catherine Noone to look more closely at drinking in airports and the licensing which applies, which is zero as far as I can make out. “I’m sure there are other places you can get beer in the airport in the more open plan areas but I would have thought that going to Burger King is more of a family experience than most other areas in the airport.
“I think it begs the bigger question, that would meet massive resistance from the DAA [Dublin Airport Authority], but it’s that licensing in airports is something that we need to have a look at. Clearly licensing laws exist in a country to protect citizens and really airports seem to be entirely devoid of the laws of the State when it comes to booze.
“The idea of serving oodles of booze is something we have to take a look at.”
A spokeswoman for the DAA said all of the vendors operate within the law.
She added: “Dublin Airport has worked in the past with Ryanair and other airlines, the Irish Aviation Authority, the Gardai and Airport Police on a joint education campaign.
“Dublin Airport will continue to work with its airline customers and all other agencies in relation to this issue and will again remind the licence holders of their responsibilities in this area.”