Over the last ten years Irish culture has changed and, with evidence from a new report, we can see that a major change has happened on the going for a few pints front.
According to a report by the Drinks Industry Group of Ireland (DIGI), there are 1,477 fewer pubs in Ireland last year than in 2005, a 17.1% drop across the country. Off-licenses are at a record high with an 11% increase since 2005.
Taking into account the impact of the recession and the increasing cost of alcohol, Ireland's pub numbers have dropped from 8,617 in 2005 to 7,140 in 2017.
The data was discovered by using the figures published by Revenue on the number of premises that have publican's licenses (7-day licenses that allow the sale of beer, wine, and spirits to be consumed on-site).
The DIGI reported that Wexford, Meath, and Dubin had the smallest decrease in publican's licenses. The number of pubs fell by one in Wexford to 157 and in Meath three, taking its total number of pubs to 207.
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18.7% of all pubs outside Dublin have closed their doors in the last 13 years and Cork has been the worst affected. In 2017, Cork, home to most pubs in the country, had 915 pubs – a 25% decrease of 1,221 since 2005. Dublin was the least impacted, only losing 13 pubs in the last 13 years with 773 pubs still registered in Dublin in 2017.
