After months of lockdown, restaurants, pubs and cafes will soon be able to welcome customers back indoors again – a welcome development given the unpredictability of the Irish summer.
However it won’t be a free-for-all and certain rules will have to be followed before customers can walk through the doors of their favourite establishment again.
When will it open?
– An exact date for the return of indoor hospitality has yet to be announced, however the Government is aiming for Friday, July 23. This date is dependant on legislation passing through the Oireachtas in the coming days and being signed off on by President Michael D Higgins early next week.
What do I need?
– Customers can dine and drink indoors as long as they produce “verifiable evidence of vaccination or immunity status” – for most people this will be the new EU Digital Covid Cert which is beginning to be sent out this week to people who are fully jabbed.
– This will be checked, along with a customer’s ID, by hospitality staff. Once verified, this data will not be retained by the cafe, bar or restaurant.
Is it only for those who are fully vaccinated?
– Tourists visiting Ireland from outside the EU, including Britain, Northern Ireland and the US will also have to present an equivalent document to in order to be served indoors.
– Children under the age of 18 will be allowed indoors only if they are accompanied by a fully vaccinated or recovered parent or guardian.
– Tánaiste Leo Varadkar has said pharmacies may soon offer antigen tests to allow those who receive negative results dine inside.
How will it be policed?
– Gardaí will not carry out spot checks like last summer when they checked diners were being served a €9 meal with their pint, instead it will fall to HSE environmental officers and officials with the Health and Safety Authority to check the rules are being followed.
– Mr Varadkar has said the public will be trusted to comply with the new rules. However anyone found to have forged a medical document to show they have been vaccinated or recovered from Covid-19 faces a €2,000 fine and/or a month in prison.
Social distancing measures will remain in place for indoor hospitality to protect workers and unvaccinated children. They will also remain in place for hotels in order to protect hotel residents and workers who may not be fully vaccinated or recovered from the virus.
What about safety measures?
– Pub, restaurant and café operators and hotels will be required to comply with the Government’s Work Safely protocol for the protection of workers and public health. Detailed operational guidelines for reopening will be published by Fáilte Ireland in the coming days.
– Under both the protocol and Failte Ireland’s guidelines, a strong emphasis will be placed on “implementing effective ventilation in all premises where the public and workers congregate.”
This includes measures to increase air flow, as well as the use of air extraction systems and the use of CO2 monitors.
(Source – Irish Independent – News – Allison Bray – 13/07/2021)