Minister for Justice Helen McEntee has said that new legislation giving increased powers to the gardaí will pave the way for the reopening of wet pubs.
It comes as a group of rural TDs has vowed to vote against the legislation that would allow gardaí to close bars caught flouting public health rules.
A Dáil debate on the topic is currently underway on the proposed legislation put forward by Minister McEntee that would allow gardaí to close a pub immediately if it is deemed in breach of public health rules, while repeat offences could see the closure extended to 30 days.
The new powers will provide a road map for the future opening of all pubs, Minister McEntee told RTÉ radio’s Today with Claire Byrne show ahead of the Dáil debate.
She said the new legislation would give greater guidance to gardaí and ensure compliance with measures such the wearing of visors, table service, social distancing and ensuring that there was a lead person in a group for contact tracing.
The Government is currently examining how to reopen all pubs safely and will put in place a new roadmap on September 13th to tell pubs what is required of them, according to the Minister.
Minister McEntee said her family had owned a pub for many years and she had worked in pubs as a student so she knew the industry and that the ”vast majority are doing a fantastic job.”
She said she would like to see the remainder of pubs reopen and pointed out that Ireland is an outlier in Europe in this regard, adding that publicans deserve clarity.
Rural TDs
It comes as six members of a group of rural Independent TDs have said the new legislation will give gardaí too much power.
Rural Independent leader Mattie McGrath has said they will oppose the plan: “We are opposed to this legislation because it gives too much powers to the gardaí, coincidentally, listening to the Garda officer associations, they do not want these powers, they have enough to do.”
“It’s the victimisation of a sector of a community. In actual fact, it’s an apartheid towards the publicans and the business people, honest, decent, hardworking business people in rural Ireland and every place outside Dublin really.”
Kerry Independent TD Michael Healy-Rae said publicans are responsible enough to ensure the guidelines are followed on their premises: “An Garda Síochána have enough to be doing than to be running around seeing how long a person is inside in a public house or how long they’re sitting down having a bite to eat.
“If you want to ensure the public health of the people of Ireland, the right thing to do is let every publican open their houses and open them right now. The reason for that is if pubs are opened up, it’ll spread the people out more and will reduce the chance of infection.”
