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Kerry’s independent TD Michael Healy-Rae has said the scenes of people drinking on the street in Killarney last Saturday night would not have happened if all the pubs were open.
Video images on social media showed a group of people singing and drinking in the street without observing social distancing or wearing masks. Two men also climbed into an old phone booth and began singing, the video shows.
What happened Saturday night was not representative of what happened in Kerry, Healy-Rae told RTÉ radio’s Morning Ireland program.
“Killarney is an extremely well policed and managed city, we don’t have instances like this in any type of event, that is not a regular type of event,” he said.
Healy-Rae said the incident on Saturday night did not occur inside a pub. “This was not within any public premises, because our innkeepers that are open run exceptionally efficient businesses, very well controlled, they are complying with all the guidelines and they are doing everything correctly.”
Under coronavirus restrictions, pubs that don’t serve food must remain closed to help suppress the spread of the virus. Several proposed reopening dates have been postponed by the government on the advice of public health experts.
Healy-Rae said the scenes in Kerry over the weekend wouldn’t have happened if all the pubs were open.
That’s why I would use that scene in Killarney on Saturday night as an argument to persuade the government to allow all the bars to open. Because if our pubs are open, people will get alcohol in a measured and principled way, by responsible people who go to our courts every 12 months and who run what I call respectable pubs. “
He said he was “advocating that all pubs should be open, not just those that serve food.”
Mr. Healy-Rae acknowledged that his brother Danny runs a pub, but said that everyone in this country has a voice.
“I do not agree with the public health advice, no one can go into detail about what is the difference between a damp house and one that serves food. There are many anomalies. Of course I will adhere and follow the advice, but that does not mean that I have to blindly agree and say that they are 100% right in everything they say. That is not life. “
HSE Executive Director Paul Reid said that while the street scenes in Killarney over the weekend were unfortunate, he did not want to see young people being blamed and attacked.
Redoubled efforts were needed to win their hearts and minds, he told Newstalk Breakfast.
“As we approach winter, we must communicate with people with hope and confidence,” Reid said.
There is no doubt that there has been an impact on services to date, but now they will have to be delivered in a new way, protecting the vulnerable and easing pressure on the hospital system, he said.
Agreements have been reached with private hospitals, he said, in case their facilities and services are needed in the event of a second increase. This will be done in a targeted way, it could be based on geography, and it will be “more agile,” he explained.
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