The incoming president of the Vintners' Federation of Ireland, Mr John Mansworth, has warned that the 6,000-strong membership must continue to work closely with the Garda and increase vigilance to combat drug abuse in public houses.
Addressing the conference yesterday in Tralee, Mr Mansworth said that to date publicans throughout the State had played an important role in helping the Garda stamp out the drugs problem. This did not mean, however, that there was room for complacency.
"When you hear that Wales is currently experiencing a heroin epidemic, it's disturbing. Everyone in society has a role to play in eradicating and highlighting drug abuse to the authorities. Our members play a vital role in assisting the authorities to tackle this serious social problem.
"We are the eyes and ears of the community, and our business brings us into contact with many people. This gives us the advantage of being in the position where we know a lot about what is going on in the community," Mr Mansworth said.
The VFI, he said, was involved in a drug awareness campaign with the Garda to combat the escalating drug abuse problem. The campaign was aimed at educating publicans about the drugs problem, how to identify drugs and the most effective means of reporting drug-dealing activity.
The federation also supported the national "crime-stoppers" campaign, which urged people to call a freephone number if they had information about crime.
"As the new chairman of the VFI, I will be asking our 6,000 members to display posters with the national freephone number on their premises. We have shown in the past that we can be helpful in the fight against drugs and I believe that we can do even more in future," Mr Mansworth said.