POLL: Do you think the ban on the sale of alcohol on Good Friday should be lifted?

Would you like a pint in a pub in Ireland on Good Friday?

A topic that raises its head in Ireland every year has become the source of debate earlier than ever in 2016 following a joint campaign launched by the Licensed Vintners Association & Vintners Federation of Ireland today. Publicans across Ireland want the ban on the sale of alcohol in Ireland on Good Friday and they want it lifted as soon as possible so it will come into effect for the Easter Rising commemorations and Ireland’s pre-Euro 2016 friendly against Switzerland at the Aviva Stadium. There are loads of reasons for wanting the ban lifted, of course. It’s bad for business for publicans and hardly ideal from a tourism perspective either. Ordinary punters, meanwhile, resent not being able to have a pint on a particular day of the year and many regard the law as completely outdated. From the other side, some people of a religious persuasion would prefer that the law be respected on one of the most important holy days of the year. Bar staff all over the country look forward to having the day off and some can’t fathom the fact that we seemingly can’t deal with a ban on the sale of alcohol for one day in an entire year, particularly when many go to the trouble of stocking up on booze beforehand. Advocates of both sides had plenty to say in a pretty intense debate on our Facebook page earlier today. The ban has been lifted in the past (in Limerick in 2010, for example) and the law that bans the sale of alcohol on Good Friday also included St. Patrick’s Day until the ban on the sale of alcohol on our national holiday was lifted nearly 60 years ago. Taking all of the above and both sides of the argument into account, would you be in favour of lifting the ban on the sale of alcohol on Good Friday? Cast your vote below.