Business representatives on government decisions: listen to us

“It is unexpected (decisions – ELTA), because the procedures on how it will be implemented have not yet been determined. So far, there are more questions than answers, especially about the implementation. On the one hand, as it seems, there is an option: a full quarantine or certain restrictions.

There were questions about the application of BDAR, data collection, how and what data should be collected. Many questions spilled out. Everybody is now experiencing such a slight shock, looking, figuring out how to live here, ”A. Romanovskis told Eltai.

According to him, although such measures will deter some customers, but it is better than universal quarantine.

“On the other hand, I understand that this is an indirect measure to reduce traffic. Such measures will deter some customers. Of course, there is always the alternative that not all of us want, it is a complete closure. I understand that that choice was, I would say, innovative and very unexpected. (…) We opted for total closure, leaving certain fuses that will reduce the number of customers, but which will not be completely closed, ”said the president of LVK.

He also suggested separating nightclubs from bars and restaurants.

“Now it applies to everyone (requirements – ELTA). (…) It is difficult to evaluate the effectiveness of the measure itself, but this is news and the path raises more questions than answers. However, it is obvious that the epidemiological situation is deteriorating, so certain handling problems must inevitably apply, “A. Romanovskis told Eltai.

Pranka: The government has once again shown distrust in business

Raimondas Pranka, president of the Lithuanian Bars and Cafes Association (LBKA), says the decision made by the government on Wednesday to limit the working hours of bars and catering establishments was uncoordinated and came from a clear sky.

“What the Government has adopted today has not agreed with us, although we have worked very hard both with the National Public Health Center (NVSC) and with the municipalities until Friday, tightening the restrictions. And today, as outside the clear sky, the quarantine zone and that can only work up to 24 hours. (Government – ELTA) did not allow them to verify and see how those stricter rules worked. Distrust in our institution has been shown once again, “R. Pranka told Eltai.

According to R. Pranka, the decision taken can have even worse consequences, as people can become congested trying to reach bars and restaurants before 24 hours.

“It just came to our knowledge then. By following the rules, we were at least able to limit the flow of people who want to stay in the city at night without letting them in at the same time and have a longer period of time to do so. And now everyone knows they will go, they want until 24 hours. They go to restaurants and close. This will cause even more problems, there will be more dissatisfied people, “he said.

Speaking of possible losses, R. Pranka said that some companies are already suffering up to 50 percent. losses.

“We are already suffering losses, some up to 80%.” Some earn only 50% of the revenue, depending on the size of the business, “he told Eltai.

The president of LBKA reiterated that limiting the time of bars and restaurants is an excessive measure.

“(New restrictions – ELTA) are really redundant measures. We strictly follow the rules and we have no illnesses or outbreaks. So far this has not changed, no outbreaks or illnesses have appeared, maybe only in one bar, where everything ended quickly (. ..) On Friday we agreed all the rules with the municipalities, we made maps, we tightened the rules, we introduced the mandatory registration, etc. It still adjusts the working hours to 24 hours. And it was agreed that by tightening the rules it will be possible to work more than 24 hours. hours, “said R. Pranka.

Consider going to court

Also, as BNS reported, Vilnius Night Alliance says it is considering going to court.

Alliance president Mark Adam Harold says there are already precedents in Europe where bar and nightclub owners and their representatives sue in court over similar bans.

“We are already talking to lawyers. There are also cases in the UK, today I was in a meeting with representatives from different countries and they said they considered it wrong to declare bars as dangerous places,” MA Harold told BNS.

He and Saulius Galdikas, the director of BrandFood, the manager of the Vilnius Piano Man bar, told BNS that the government’s decision was extremely unexpected, as bars and nightclubs were told that these decisions were the responsibility of the municipality. .

The restaurant association does not know how the registration will be done

When the government decided to introduce mandatory visitor registration to public catering establishments on Wednesday, the president of the Association of Hotels and Restaurants Evalda Šiškauskienė says the decision was quite unexpected and it is not clear what data should be included in the registration of visitors.

“It was quite unexpected and on Friday we consulted with the Vilnius city municipality, we introduced quite strict requirements and self-regulation. Now let’s explain what you really need to write and record.

Under our agreement and previous registration, all we needed were phone numbers, now writing us that is not enough. We are explaining what is really needed, what it should be and whether it will violate the protection of personal data, ”E. Šiškauskienė told Eltai.

“(…) We have agreed that if a person sits longer in a restaurant or at a party or on a birthday, we register those cases instead of those who come for lunch on the day because there are safe distances, masks and partitions in many restaurants. This surprised me a bit, because we have asked many times that the company be consulted before making any decision, “added the president of the association.

The government decided this Wednesday in a draft amendment to the resolution to shorten the working hours of catering establishments, restaurants, cafes, bars, discos and other places of entertainment: the activities of these establishments will be allowed from 7 to 24 hours.

There will be no restrictions on working hours where food is delivered to go or otherwise delivered, where catering is provided to employees of shift work establishments on their premises and premises. establishments. Opening hours will not be restricted in casinos and slot machines, bingo halls, gambling halls and betting points, unless catering is provided at these locations.

The visitor registry has been established by the government since Monday for leisure, entertainment, events, catering and other venues. The changes will go into effect on October 26.