"This feels devastating": Offaly publicans' despair at reopening setback

The news that pubs not serving food cannot reopen until the end of August, at the very earliest, has been described as a devastating blow to the industry by publicans in Offaly.

On Tuesday evening, the Government announced that the reopening of all pubs on August 10 would be deferred due to concerns about how they might contribute to increased community transmission of Covid-19.

It came as a fresh setback for publicans like Clodagh Fay, of The Chestnut Bar in Birr, who has been hoping to reopen throughout the summer but is still none the wiser as to when she'll be able to welcome customers again.

"It's very disappointing," Clodagh told the Offaly Independent on Wednesday. "It's been quite stressful, and I really thought that this time we would get open.

"I am seriously worried now, because, if they are keeping us closed to make sure kids go back to school, are they really going to let us open the day before the kids go back to school?

"Does that mean then that the month of September is gone? Then you're coming into the winter, and you're going have the 'flu season, so it's very worrying. It's hard to know when we'll be able to trade, and this is our livelihood."

Clodagh said she had taken steps to ensure that her premises would be 'ready to go' once the green light was given by the authorities, but now everything is on hold indefinitely.

"I think every publican in the country is worried about it. I don't think it's going to stop people socialising, so I think all of the house parties, parties in marquees, and all of those mini events that are being created are going to continue," she commented.

The thought of making a significant investment in her business in order to start serving food was also fraught with uncertainty.

"If you put that big investment in, you'd be very nervous because you might be closed down again, within a couple of weeks, until they have a vaccine.

"I have to say it feels pretty devastating, at the moment, for Irish culture and the pub trade. A lot of elderly publicans, or people who have relatives that have health issues, are definitely talking about throwing in the towel at this point."

She said an increase in Government support for pubs would be needed, and mentioned ideas like providing pubs with financial support that would be equivalent to a percentage of their turnover during a 'normal' year.

The need for a support package for publicans was also emphasised by Cllr John Clendennen, of Giltrap's pub in Kinnitty, who is chairman of the Offaly branch of the Vintners' association.

While Cllr Clendennen has reopened his own pub, serving food, he said there was "a sense of frustration, despair, anger and very little hope" among many publicans in the county following this week's news.

"Some of the measures, and the investment, our members have made over the last number of months, to prepare themselves for reopening post-Covid have been significant. So to get the news that we're now on the 'long finger' indefinitely has been a major blow to the trade," he said.

"I think we need clarity now in terms of when we're going to reopen, what that roadmap looks like, and also what the support package or compensation package is going to be."

He called for an end to the the "two-tier system" which differentiates between pubs which do and don't serve food.

"We just can't stay closed indefinitely, as a trade," he said. "Nobody is looking for a return to all-night parties or anything like that. Whether it's restricted opening hours that are needed, or social distancing, or whatever the case is, let the guidelines be outlined and let us adhere to them.

"There's no member of Offaly Vintners, or national Vintners, who wants to put anyone's health at risk," he added.

"We appreciate that we're dealing with a very serious situation and we want to provide a safe, healthy environment where people can come out and have an hour, or 105 minutes, of social time that gives them a change of scenery, basically.

"We've seen clusters of cases in other sectors in recent times and yet we, as publicans, seem to be the victims here."

The accommodation provided at Giltraps reopened on June 29 and the pub reopened subsequently with food service. "We're adhering to the restaurant guidelines. It's difficult trading - no doubt about it - but we're doing our best to ensure full compliance," he said.

He also spoke about the emotional toll being taken on publicans who cannot reopen.

"There are a lot of publicans right now that are suffering from serious mental stress and a total lack of clarity for the future, as to where they stand with their business, and where they're going," he said.

"Businesses don't just stand still with zero costs - there is a financial burden whether you're trading or not, and to try and just maintain buildings, and keep bills paid, has been a serious financial challenge for all our members.

"That's not sustainable, long-term, without a clear roadmap of where we're actually going," he concluded.