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The hasty withdrawal of Health Minister Stephen Donnelly’s memorandum on alcohol consumption abroad has been called “amateur hour” by his own colleagues.
The memo, filed at the behest of Taoiseach Micheál Martin, was withdrawn amid strong opposition from Fine Gael and the Green Party.
A government spokeswoman said the decision to withdraw the memo was made during a pre-Cabinet meeting between Martin, Donnelly, Tánaiste Leo Varadkar and Green Party leader Eamon Ryan.
However, other cabinet sources have said they were given copies of the memo, but it was clear that it “had no support” and it was withdrawn.
On Monday night, an original plan for a total ban on takeout pints was shelved after a secondary revolt led by former minister Barry Cowen.
This is the second time Donnelly has failed to get a memorandum approved by the Cabinet, after previous plans to empower the gardaí to break house parties were rejected.
Donnelly and Taoiseach Micheál Martin will meet with the Garda Commissioner to discuss the application of Covid-19 regulations after the Government made its second revocation on the sale of alcohol to go.
The desire to clamp down on such gatherings came after Martin said he was “upset” by videos on social media showing crowds drinking in both Cork and Dublin.
The focus will be on enforcing existing statutes in the country’s towns and cities where outdoor drinking is currently illegal.
Cabinet sources say ministers believed the measures would appear reactive and erode public acceptance of the existing guidelines.
“There was some concern about punishing people who were doing the right thing,” said a source.
Art Minister Catherine Martin said a large-scale ban “will not bring people with us.”
Donnelly said that he, Martin, and Justice Minister Helen McEntee would now meet with Garda Commissioner Drew Harris.
“We want to meet with the Commissioner to see if Gardaí feels comfortable with the powers and resources that he has,” he said.
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