Blog Tracker
08-09-2020, 07:11
Visit The Pub Curmudgeon site (https://pubcurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2020/09/and-you-think-youve-got-it-bad.html)
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FwaSzjMFmO8/X1Z1TyfvOAI/AAAAAAAAHhs/9_N-l5BwHxUU1kZYcnv5eQcPsQEmzlVPgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/bars%2Breopening%2Bin%2BEurope.png (https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FwaSzjMFmO8/X1Z1TyfvOAI/AAAAAAAAHhs/9_N-l5BwHxUU1kZYcnv5eQcPsQEmzlVPgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/bars%2Breopening%2Bin%2BEurope.png)
Anyone who thinks the licensed trade in England has been badly done to might consider casting a westward glance across the Irish Sea. Regular commenter Professor Pie-Tin has kept us updated on how the Irish Republic, as the map shows, is now the only country in the whole of Europe where you can’t visit a bar just to have a drink, not even outdoors. Apparently they are finally going to allow bars to reopen later this month, although a firm date has yet to be confirmed. And they are going to have to operate under such severe restrictions (https://more.talktalk.co.uk/news/2020/09/06/pub-owners-fear-for-future-over-restrictive-reopening-guidelines) that many publicans doubt whether it will be worth their while.
Possibly as some kind of sop to the hospitality industry, the Irish government have announced a Stay and Spend (http://www.moneyguideireland.com/stay-and-spend-incentive.html) scheme that will operate from the beginning of October to the end of April. Presumably this was modelled to some extent on the British Eat Out to Help Out initiative, but it is only a very pale shadow. The government-funded discount is only 20%,not 50% and, rather than being given at the time of purchase, it will be refunded as a tax credit at the end of the year, thus greatly reducing the immediacy of its impact. Plus the minimum spend is €25, so you will need to buy a pretty substantial meal. No getting a Wetherspoon’s dessert on its own, or a single coffee, at half price.
To add insult to injury, they have even introduced a bizarre requirement for pubs and restaurants to keep a record (https://www.rte.ie/news/2020/0903/1163075-covid-rules-restaurants/) of every single food item purchased by their customers. Ostensibly, the reason is to confirm that customers have actually eaten a meal, which has been allowed for a couple of months provided there was a minimum spend of €9. Not only does this impose a huge bureaucratic burden on hospitality businesses, but it also has disturbingly totalitarian overtones. You can just imagine Public Health itching to get their hands on details of exactly who has eaten what.
More... (https://pubcurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2020/09/and-you-think-youve-got-it-bad.html)
https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FwaSzjMFmO8/X1Z1TyfvOAI/AAAAAAAAHhs/9_N-l5BwHxUU1kZYcnv5eQcPsQEmzlVPgCLcBGAsYHQ/s320/bars%2Breopening%2Bin%2BEurope.png (https://2.bp.blogspot.com/-FwaSzjMFmO8/X1Z1TyfvOAI/AAAAAAAAHhs/9_N-l5BwHxUU1kZYcnv5eQcPsQEmzlVPgCLcBGAsYHQ/s1600/bars%2Breopening%2Bin%2BEurope.png)
Anyone who thinks the licensed trade in England has been badly done to might consider casting a westward glance across the Irish Sea. Regular commenter Professor Pie-Tin has kept us updated on how the Irish Republic, as the map shows, is now the only country in the whole of Europe where you can’t visit a bar just to have a drink, not even outdoors. Apparently they are finally going to allow bars to reopen later this month, although a firm date has yet to be confirmed. And they are going to have to operate under such severe restrictions (https://more.talktalk.co.uk/news/2020/09/06/pub-owners-fear-for-future-over-restrictive-reopening-guidelines) that many publicans doubt whether it will be worth their while.
Possibly as some kind of sop to the hospitality industry, the Irish government have announced a Stay and Spend (http://www.moneyguideireland.com/stay-and-spend-incentive.html) scheme that will operate from the beginning of October to the end of April. Presumably this was modelled to some extent on the British Eat Out to Help Out initiative, but it is only a very pale shadow. The government-funded discount is only 20%,not 50% and, rather than being given at the time of purchase, it will be refunded as a tax credit at the end of the year, thus greatly reducing the immediacy of its impact. Plus the minimum spend is €25, so you will need to buy a pretty substantial meal. No getting a Wetherspoon’s dessert on its own, or a single coffee, at half price.
To add insult to injury, they have even introduced a bizarre requirement for pubs and restaurants to keep a record (https://www.rte.ie/news/2020/0903/1163075-covid-rules-restaurants/) of every single food item purchased by their customers. Ostensibly, the reason is to confirm that customers have actually eaten a meal, which has been allowed for a couple of months provided there was a minimum spend of €9. Not only does this impose a huge bureaucratic burden on hospitality businesses, but it also has disturbingly totalitarian overtones. You can just imagine Public Health itching to get their hands on details of exactly who has eaten what.
More... (https://pubcurmudgeon.blogspot.com/2020/09/and-you-think-youve-got-it-bad.html)