I am delighted to be here this afternoon to officially mark the expansion of one of Dublin’s most famous landmarks – the St James’s Gate Brewery.
Urban myth has it that when a companion once remarked to Brendan Behan that Guinness had been good to the people of Dublin, Behan looked the man straight in the eye and retorted “And haven’t the people of Dublin been good to Guinness?” If I had been Behan’s companion that day in the pub, I certainly would not have challenged such a sharp rebuke. Looking around me now however, I think we can confidently say that there is equal truth in both of the men’s claims.
For almost two and a half centuries, the distinctive archway of St James’s Gate has opened onto the spiritual home of Guinness. And that home has provided so much to the people of this city – be it in terms of employment, tourism, social regeneration – not to mention a particularly fine pint of stout!
Equally however, one cannot deny but that the people of Dublin have a great “grá” for their Guinness. There is a certain pride amongst Dubliners in the creamy black and white pint that attracts visitors from far and wide to taste the real thing in its birthplace. We are confident that we have something unique here in Dublin – a drink that is as well known in Lagos as it is in Limerick - but that is still inextricably linked with this city. Given the importance of the Guinness brand name to Dublin, I am delighted to mark the expansion of its original brewing home.
When Arthur Guinness started brewing ale here on a four-acre site in 1759, he could hardly have imagined the phenomenal success story that would become his brewery. But Arthur Guinness was obviously a shrewd man. Despite starting his empire by brewing ale, he was not slow to recognise the changing tastes of the time. He quickly developed a Dublin version of the porter popular amongst the porters in Covent Garden – and with every passing year the popularity of his distinctive stout grew. In that way, a further year’s marking was etched on the stones flanking the archway of St James’s Gate.
And now due to the €24million investment programme undertaken here at St James’s Gate, 2005 will be remembered as a particularly significant year in the history of this brewery. Not only does this investment yield a 50% increase in output from the brewery, it also further consolidates Diageo’s presence in Ireland. And that is good news not only for the 1200 employees that work on site here but also for the Irish economy in terms of spending on raw materials, transport and energy.
The particular strength of St James’s Gate is highlighted by the fact that it was deemed capable of meeting the demands of the Great Britain market, as well as the Irish and international markets it already serves. I know that the team here has been engaged in continuous improvement programmes since September, 2003 to ensure the smooth transition of operations from the Port Royal site to Dublin. This has meant that the commitment to quality, long associated with Guinness, has been maintained throughout the changeover.
It is hardly surprising, in fact, that St James’s Gate was deemed capable of taking on the additional brewing given the level of investment that has taken place here in recent years. Since 1999 some €50million has been put into state of the art automation, waste reduction and the most innovative brewing processes.
As the world’s leading premium drinks business, I want to pay tribute to Diageo for taking the decision to invest so heavily in St James’s Gate. I am also delighted to hear that you recently completed the purchase of another famous Irish drinks establishment – the “Old Bushmills” Distillery. I know that Bushmills will benefit hugely from Diageo’s global market presence, with your trading power in some 180 countries selling some of the most well-known drinks’ brands available today.
As you will all be aware, there has been growing public concern in recent times about the extent of alcohol misuse in this country. In order to address this problem, the Government recently agreed to establish a Working Group mobilising relevant stakeholders to achieve a reduction in alcohol misuse. This Working Group was established in the context of the Special Initiative on Alcohol and Drug Misuse under Sustaining Progress and it met for the first time in July.
Alcohol misuse is a serious issue for Irish society and I believe that we can use social partnership to get everyone working together to tackle the problem. The business sector has a critical role to play and I want to pay tribute to Diageo for their active support for this approach. Indeed, Michael Patten is one of the IBEC representatives on the Working Group and I am sure he will bring many good ideas to the table. I know that Diageo have also provided €1.5million in funding to the Geary Institute in UCD to undertake a 3 year study identifying the key behavioural drivers that lead to alcohol misuse. Your involvement in such initiatives highlights your commitment to promoting sensible drinking and to reducing the amount of alcohol misuse nationwide.
In conclusion, I want to wish all of you here at St James’s Gate the very best in your brewing of Dublin’s famous stout!
Thank you.
ENDS