[ad_1]
The government will provide more clarity on the new rules and extended hours for pubs and restaurants tomorrow, according to Justice Minister Helen McEntee.
The minister told RTE Radio 1’s Morning Ireland program that the cabinet will provide this clarity to bar and restaurant owners as part of the new and revised Living With Covid-19 plan.
The minister said: “The government wants to make sure this is the last shutdown; that as we ease restrictions, as we open up, every part of our society, including the hospitality industry, as we give people clarity on how they can go about their daily lives, we must do so carefully .
Minister McEntee did not give a definitive date when asked about comments by Taoiseach Micheal Martin last week, in which he said that companies in the hospitality sector will not be able to reopen their doors until “mid-summer.”
In addition to the new Living With Covid-19 plan, pubs and nightclubs are expected to extend their opening hours on Sundays when they finally open.
This would abolish current laws that state that pubs must close at 11.30pm during the week, while nightclubs must close at 2.30am.
But that eventual opening is still missing.
The Taoiseach told RTÉ’s Raidió na Gaeltachta at the weekend: “There will not be much change (after this phase) because the numbers are still too high … what we want is to reopen schools gradually … slowly, we will be cautious , because we have to monitor the effect on the virus.
“The biggest challenge we face are new variants, as they could affect vaccines. It is sensible to open slowly, as the vaccines are arriving. “
The publicans’ response has been one of anger at the Taoiseach’s comments.
Licensed Vintners Association executive director Donall O’Keeffe said the hospitality industry is experiencing “fierce stress amid mixed government messages surrounding the lifting of restrictions on eating and drinking out.”
O’Keeffe asked the government to establish exactly the conditions necessary for the sites to reopen and resume operations.
“Government communications – Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, Saturday, all kinds of announcements, corrections, clarifications and extensions – are causing fierce stress to the 7,000 families of innkeepers in this country, our staff and our suppliers,” he said while speaking. . in Morning Ireland today.
It’s been 343 days since the wet pubs, pubs that only serve alcohol, opened in Dublin City.
The Living With Covid-19 plan, to be announced by the Taoiseach tomorrow, is set to outline the agenda for schools, hospitality, retail, construction and other areas of life during the pandemic in the summer months.
To receive coronavirus updates delivered directly to your inbox, sign up for our newsletter here.
[ad_2]