MOLLY GUARDS' ALIVE ALIVE GO

Council eyes new plan to stop statue being groped

- BY DANNY DE VAAL

COUNCIL chiefs have given up posting stewards at the Molly Malone statue to stop tourists from groping it - and are now scrambling to find a more permanent solution, this newspaper can reveal.

Dublin City Council believe the practice is "ingrained" into sightseers and confirmed they are exploring the idea of installing flower beds around the base as a possible fix.

Rubbing the famous fishmonger’s breasts for luck is believed to have been thought up by a cheeky tour guide in 2012.

Council bosses acknowledged that when the marshals were in place, people would cooperate, but once they were gone, the Suffolk Street statue would be molested again.