Sports fans and gig goers get taste of normality, but indoor dining remains under threat
Pictured are empty outdoor dining areas on Dame Street in Dublin as the rain pours down.
While sports fans and music lovers will get a taste of what they’ve been missing at pilot live events across the country today, plans for a further reopening on July 5 remain in the balance.
One thousand racing fans will flock to The Dubai Duty-Free Irish Derby at the Curragh in Co Kildare today, with 50 complimentary tickets set aside for frontline workers as a show of thanks for their efforts throughout the past year.
Meanwhile, in Kerry, concert-goers are set to enjoy a Christy Moore gig at the INEC in Killarney tonight. The venue can hold up to 4,500 but just 200 lucky ticket holders will attend the concert which is seated.
Tickets were sold in pods of six with guests given staggered arrival times, a pre-allocated table, and asked to wear face-masks when making their way to and from their table.
Today's pilot events are the latest in a series of live music and sporting events. Speaking to on Saturday, Minister of State for Sport Jack Chambers said he is "not aware" of any Covid-19 cases having been identified at live pilot events in Ireland so far.
The Minister said the government has started with "low numbers" at thes events, but he is confident "a much bigger" return of spectators will be seen in July and August.
"People will see that scaled up and we'll make announcements in the next week or so," he confirmed.
While today’s pilot events are a milestone on the path back to normality, the Government has been issuing warning signals that the next phase of the reopening plan could be pushed back due to concerns around the Delta variant.
The National Public Health Emergency Team (Nphet) is due to meet to make a final recommendation on the return of indoor dining on Thursday, with the decision by the Government set to be announced on Friday - just three days before indoor hospitality is set to return on July 5.
This phase of reopening is also set to allow for 50 people to attend a wedding and permit four households to gather indoors.
Michelin star chef and restaurateur JP McMahon said he doesn't believe a delay to the reopening of indoor hospitality will be down to the Delta variant, but due to "mismanagement" by the Government.
"It used to be about hospitalisations and it used to be about deaths.. the goalposts keep moving."
"It goes back to mismanagement, it goes back to why we never did anything properly, we didn't learn about quarantine or borders."
We are the only country in Europe that has yet to return to indoor dining, Mr McMahon said, and the only country in Europe that seems to be "absolutely hostile" towards the use of antigen testing.
Tired of the government. Tired of waiting. Mentally exhausted. Living in limbo. What else can I do? At times, I feel like leaving hospitality, then I check myself & say it will be fine. Then I'm down again wanting to get out. Not enough staff to open. Not enough clarity to move.
— Dr. Jp McMahon (@mistereatgalway) June 25, 2021
Speaking to Brendan O'Connor on , the Galway restaurateur said he would "100%" rather Nphet and the Government told him he had to close today than wait until Friday with a small chance he may be allowed to reopen as planned on July 5.
"I honestly think the mental trauma of having to wait until Friday is worse than having to close for two weeks.
"It's 100,000 people's lives, it's lots of stock, it's lots of money, it's a lot of labour. Meet today in an emergency meeting and say, okay, we don't know, but we have to call it.
"If they call it and say we have to wait two weeks, that's fine, but you can't tell us Thursday or Friday."
By waiting to announce the final plan on Friday, the Government is showing a complete lack of respect to the industry, Mr McMahon said.
Meanwhile, the chief executive of the HSE has said while the Delta variant poses an “obvious threat,” we are tackling it with a stronger hand thanks to the success of the vaccination programme.
The Delta variant poses an obvious threat. But we do tackle it in a stronger position. Another 59,000 vaccines administered yesterday, & over 270,000 already this week.Over 40% of adults now fully vaccinated & almost 4M in total administered. We'll keep playing our part. @HSELive
— Paul Reid (@paulreiddublin) June 26, 2021
Over 270,000 vaccines have been administered this week, Paul Reid said, meaning over 40% of the adult population is now fully vaccinated.
On Friday, Taoiseach Micheál Martin said the AstraZeneca and Johnson & Johnson vaccines should be reconsidered for younger cohorts stating the spread of the Delta variant has changed the 'balance of risk.'
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