There have been calls today for pubs to be permitted to resume indoor service in December – or whenever the Level 5 restrictions end.
The Licensed Vintners Association (LVA) and the Vintners Federation of Ireland (VFI) say pub workers remain concerned that they can not afford Christmas for their families on the Pandemic Unemployment Payment (PUP).
They said that if pubs remain closed they believe a deep division will be created as large sections of the economy are allowed to go back to work and receive their normal salaries in the run up to Christmas, while the families of those working in the hospitality industry must watch on.
One third of the pubs in Dublin – about 250 premises – have not opened for a single day since March 15.
Almost half of the pubs throughout the country traded for a total of just over two weeks during that period, before being closed down again when the Government tightened the restrictions ahead of the lockdown.
Padraig Cribben, the chief executive of the VFI, said: “This was shown when the food pubs reopened in June and when the traditional pubs outside Dublin reopened towards the end of September.
“There were no increases in the infection rate attributed to pubs.”
Donall O’Keeffe, CEO of the LVA, said that it was OK for the Government to impose this burden on tens of thousands of families all across Ireland.
“It’s not ok for Government policy to be creating a “haves and have nots” division all over the country around Christmas,” he added.
While a Senator, speaking in the Seanad today, reckons that people are going to soicalise over Christmas regardless of restrictions and should be encouraged to do so in a safer manner than may be the case in unregulated environments.
So he is calling for pubs and restaurants to be allowed reopen in December.
Fianna Fail Senator Ollie Crow said: “I spoke in Seanad Éireann about why pubs and restaurants should be open in December.
“People are inevitably going to socialise so the choice between controlled environments with tracing etc and uncontrolled environments.
“The data clear – less than 1% of clusters related to hospitality sector.”
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