Pubs remaining closed is causing ongoing uncertainty and stress for those in the trade

Hopes dashed of an early return to the pubs

People yearning to go for a drink to their local pub have yet to get any sign from government of when they can visit a hostelry to enjoy their favourite tipple and the sociability of being with friends - a fact that is causing deep frustration for Tipperary pub owners and their colleagues all over the country.

Noreen O’ Sullivan who runs the renowned Rocky's Bar in Kickham Street, Nenagh, with her husband Jim, said they were very disappointed the government gave absolutely no indication of when pubs like theirs can reopen when it announced some easing of Covid-19 restrictions last week.

“We have been closed now for twelve months with the exception of just a period of two weeks,” said Ms O’ Sullivan, who asserted that the government needed to form some kind of road map to give publicans an indication of when they can re-open.

“Who would have thought that when we closed our doors on March 14th last year that we would still be closed over a full year later? The situation is causing ongoing uncertainty and stress for those of us working in the trade - it's horrific to be honest with you.”

VACCINATIONS

Ms O’ Sullivan, a past President of the Vintners Federation of Ireland, said ensuring as many people as possible were vaccinated against Covid was the only solution to ensuring that pubs could fully re-open again.

“What we need now is clear communication from the government who must come up with a plan on when we can reopen. All of us as publicans want to know where we are going - this kind of information is badly needed,” she said.

The huge disruption to the lives and livelihoods of publicans has been very hard on them. Like many, Jim O’ Sullivan left in his mid-teens after sitting his Intermediate Certificate in the 1970s to help out his late father in the family run pub. To have his way of life pulled from under him after almost five decades of pulling pints and enjoying the sociable atmosphere of pub life has been extremely hard.

Said Ms O’ Sullivan: “For people like Jim it's his career, and there are very many more like him. They don't know anything else and the closures have been very hard on them.

“What we all miss as publicans is the interaction with our customers that we enjoyed every day. This is the life publicans' enjoy and then, full stop, that life is gone - you're closed. It’s very hard on everyone. Livelihoods have gone and there is huge stress and worry out there. You are worried that you will lose staff who have also being out of work for such a long period.

“All publicans want to do is get back to work. And it's not just publicans: I think the mental health of everyone is now being impacted because we have lived with restrictions for so long. It's been a very difficult and long year.”

While acknowledging that the State did provide a stimulus package to the sector last year, Ms O’ Sullivan said pub owners were only too well aware that the bills keep coming in the door despite the absence of an income to support such financial demands.

“We know we have received support, but the bills, lots of bills, don't stop coming in. There are publicans still waiting to be paid insurance for the losses they have suffered as a result of the disruption and others who are not covered by insurance. Yet many insurance premiums are still at the same rate even though the pubs are closed.”

She added: “We are hoping that in the next couple of weeks the government will give us some guide on how we can re-open because we have now lived with twelve months of uncertainty. We are not asking to reopen right now; we want everybody to be safe and that when people come back to pubs they are returning to a safe environment.

GUIDANCE FROM GOVERNMENT

“But we need guidance from the government. Will we be able to reopen when 80 per cent of people are vaccinated, or when? How are they going to reopen pubs; give us some guide and some ray of hope.”

Ms O’ Sullivan’s concerns have been echoed by the Padraig Cribbin, the Chief Executive of the Vintners Federation of Ireland who said the continued absence of a coherent roadmap to guide the pub sector towards reopening is causing huge distress to publicans, their families and staff.

“While public health, rightfully, remains the number one concern, Government needs to create a plan that allows the hospitality sector understand and plan for how it is to reopen,” said Mr Cribbin.