[ad_1]
A ban on two or more people gathering outside to drink alcohol to go will be introduced under plans that the Cabinet will consider today amid concerns about street gatherings and the rise in Covid-19 cases in the last days.
High-level government sources confirmed that Health Minister Stephen Donnelly would come forward with proposals to control street alcohol consumption.
It is understood that the regulations will not prevent pubs from serving take out drinks, but will prevent people from gathering outside to drink in groups of two or more.
The regulation, which was being drafted on Monday night, will make it a crime, punishable by a fine of 80 euros, for two or more people to meet outdoors where one of them is drinking alcohol.
The move is aimed at individuals rather than bars, which will still be able to sell take-out drinks for people to consume at home.
One source said it was intended to make it easier for the Garda to separate large groups of people who drink together outside.
It comes as a senior official from the National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) warns that Ireland could have “hundreds of thousands” of Covid-19 cases in January if large numbers of people return home at Christmas.
Current efforts to reduce virus cases are also misplaced, said Deputy Medical Director Dr. Ronan Glynn, and may not be reversed at the end of the Level 5 restrictions on December 1.
Dr. Glynn criticized “a selfish minority” of people who violate public health standards by drinking heavily on city streets.
With the number of daily cases trending up again in recent days, Dr. Glynn warned, “We need to get to a much better place than this by December 1st.” Referring to the goal of less than 100 cases per day by that date, he said: “We are not even close to that at the moment.”
Asking people to avoid non-essential travel during Christmas, Dr. Glynn said, “We don’t want asymptomatic people, who feel completely fine, to return to this country to meet their loved ones, to interact with their families extended through generations; younger people, older people, and people with medical conditions.
“We don’t want thousands of people to do that, resulting in hundreds of thousands of cases in January and deaths, morbidity and mortality in January and February.”
EU Vaccine Agreement
The cabinet will also discuss Tuesday reaffirming Ireland’s commitment to be part of any EU program to procure supplies of vaccines approved for human use.
Donnelly will seek an agreement to participate in the EU advance purchase agreement with Pfizer for its Covid-19 drug. If agreed, the state will be entitled to 1.11 per cent of the total EU shipment, or around 2.2 million doses.
The Cabinet will also discuss the student support package, which will see a € 250 payment to students for Covid-related assistance.
Foreign Minister Simon Coveney will brief cabinet on the general Brexit bill under development, while Culture Minister Catherine Martin will present her plan for guaranteed income for artists.
Donnelly is also expected to meet with public health officials this week as work in the government intensifies to come up with a plan to get out of the lockdown in two weeks. Ministers should review existing restrictions when they meet on Tuesday, four weeks after the six-week shutdown, although there are no expectations of a loosening of the regime before December 1.
A senior government figure said Monday that he expected pubs to remain closed but restaurants to open, but also stressed that no decisions had been made at this stage.
[ad_2]