Singling out ‘wet pubs’ that do not serve food again would destroy all trust in politicians, a vintners’ group said on Sunday.
The Licensed Vintners Association (LVA) slammed “contradictory messaging” from the Government and the National Public Health Emergency Team (NPHET) on the issue of reopening all pubs on Tuesday, September 21.
It comes after NPHET called for the continued closure of ‘wet pubs’ in Dublin as Covid-19 cases continue to rise in the capital.
NPHET are due to meet again on Tuesday with a decision on any restrictions in Dublin to be announced then.
A spokesperson for the LVA said wet pubs in Dublin “played no role” in the current infection levels and warned that delaying the reopening could push some premises into mortgage default as a mortgage moratorium expires at the end of September.
Donall O’Keeffe, Chief Executive of the LVA said: “If the Government were to further delay the reopening of the non food pubs in Dublin, it would completely destroy any trust publicans have in the Government’s management of this crisis.
“It would fly in the face of the commitments made by Government last week, shatter the value of that Cabinet announcement and would raise the question as to what basis the Government is making its decisions. It would also have the immediate impact of driving many of these businesses into immediate mortgage default.
“The mixed messages coming from NPHET and the Government is really adding to the uncertainty facing the publicans, their staff, suppliers and all the families involved.
“They feel like the ground keeps shifting around them. This is not the way a crisis should be managed.”
Mr O’Keeffe added that NPHET’s recommendation was “bizarre” and said there was “zero rationale” behind their advice.
He said: “NPHET has repeatedly singled out pubs for draconian treatment and has continued to obsess about pubs rather those elements of Irish society where the real problems lie such as meat factories, direct provision or household gatherings.”
