Not a hope
More scams and fake news
After yesterdayâs note not to believe everything you see on Whatsapp, today some members have passed on a letter purporting to be from the Taoiseachâs office and signed by Chief Medical Officer Tony Holohan detailing when pubs will reopen.
Itâs a fake.
Once again, when credible information becomes available we will immediately inform you.
Ill go for june 29th reopening.
Theyâll be open in June at the latest.
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Good riddance
I wont go near one for the summer. stay away
Stay in, Stay green.
Dear TFK,
Hereâs the latest update from VFI head office:
When will pubs reopen?
Thatâs the question every publican is asking after the comments from Minister for Health Simon Harris in yesterdayâs Sunday Independent. The quotes are worth repeating here:
Mr Harris said social or physical distancing will be a reality until there is a vaccine or an effective treatment â and thatâs likely to be next year.
âWhatâs not going to come back quickly are scenarios in which we canât safely socially distance. So I canât see how people can be in packed pubs again as long as this virus is still with us and we donât have a vaccine or an effective treatment,â he said.
He said it is âhighly unlikely weâre going to be seeing very large mass gatherings this yearâ.
His comments have, understandably, increased anxiety amongst publicans. His remarks were the first time a link was made between pubs opening with a vaccine.
Later on Monday, the Taoiseach was asked about the same issue. His comments, too, are worth repeating here:
'Yeah, you know, itâs impossible to say at the stage [when they will open] youâll know that in some countries, Sweden, for example, the pubs never closed. And while they definitely have a higher death rate per million then Ireland does, they have a lower one than other countries.
'So, you know, a lot of this is going to have to figured out as we go along, when we have some concept as to how many people have already had this infection.
'But I do know for publicans and restauranteurs and people working in the hospitality sector, this must be a very worrying time. Because, you know, the chances are that as we reopen the economy, as we reopen society, the things weâre going to reopen last for obvious reasons are going to be mass gatherings, and places where people congregate and could pass on infection.
âAnd, you know, thatâs a real difficulty for them, and I appreciate that and weâll do our best to assist them to get started again once we can reopen, I hope we donât have to wait for a vaccine or a effective treatment to do that. But we just donât know the answer to those questions at this time and I wish I could give people more certainty, but I really canât.â
Itâs fair to say the Taoiseach is holding out more hope for our sector than the Minister for Health. He mentions pubs in Sweden never closing during the crisis and that he âhopesâ pubs reopening isnât conditional on a vaccine being developed. He also states that âweâll do our best to assist them to get started again once we can reopen.â
VFI Chief Executive Padraig Cribben says:
âThe comments from Minister for Health Simon have caused great unease among publicans. Given the sensitivities surrounding this issue his remarks were unnecessary and unhelpful. We note the Taoiseach hopes pubs can open before a vaccine is found while acknowledging in Sweden pubs never closed during the crisis. The government should immediately engage with publican representative bodies to devise a pathway towards reopening.
"Publicans fully understand that public health comes first but they need guidance about what possible timeframe lies ahead. We know this is a major challenge but itâs one that has to be addressed now.â
Lifting the lockdown
On lifting the coronavirus restrictions, Mr Varadkar said that the Government was working on a plan for the staged lifting of restrictions.
âWhat weâre working on at the moment is a plan that will be ready by the end of April-early May in advance of the May 5th big day if you like. And what we hope to set out is a step-wise plan which indicates how we would reopen the country in different steps and what are the criteria that would have to be met to move from one stage to the next.â
Mr Varadkar said until that plan was ready, he would prefer not to speculate on what would open first.
âI really understand that a lot of people are beginning to find the lockdown, starting to find the restrictions very difficult, and Iâd prefer not to raise hopes or raise expectations only to dash them,â he said.
He said he hoped that in May the Government could authorise the reopening of âcertain services, certain parts of the economy and then review it every two to three weeks.â
âBut Iâd rather give people certainty when we have that towards the end of April or early May,â he said.
In summary:
- The VFI is seeking urgent engagement with government to discuss solutions for reopening
- The Taoiseach is more optimistic than the Minister for Health about reopening without the need for a vaccine
Kind regards,
Brian
Given the North is likely to reopen pubs earlier than us, because, well, because of their bulldog spirit or something. I predict a serious exile to the North in the summer months.
Dibs not being the designated driver.
Newcastle Co. Down will be the place to be this summer. You heard it here first.
Iâd say Crossmaglen is some spot for a pint and a few shots
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There will be the mother of all breakouts when the pubs open up. It will be like a Roman emperor announcing a week of games in the collesseum. Everyone whoâs anyone will be out on the lash
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Pretty much word for word what Iâd expect to hear from varadker. Managing expectations is very important. Harrisâ comments were too unfiltered and were probably designed to put publicans on the back foot. Tell them 12 months and theyâll be more willing to accept restrictions on distancing/numbers/opening hours etc
They were designed specifically to get the nursing homes off the front page, defection 101
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The lifting of the restrictions and getting it right is the most important political decision in the history of the state. We cannot afford to go backwards and the prospect of a second lockdown
#closepubs #openmorecoffeeshops
Did the Windjammer in Dublin ever close?
Maybe weâll end up the âcafe cultureâ that Michael McDowell spike about years ago
Smashed Avo for all
Pints for none
It was cafe bars he wanted. Demi beers and casual lunch wine for all.
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