Pub bosses call for speedier return of indoor hospitality

Pub bosses have thrown their weight behind a push to to get indoor hospitality reopened in Northern before the proposed date of May 24.

Stephen Magorrian, MD of the Horatio Group, which counts the Northern Whig and Horatio Todd’s among its stable, said the trade was “ready and willing” to do whatever it took to get an earlier date.

While hotelier Bill Wolsey described the current situation of hundreds of people queuing while not socially distanced to get a seat at a venue with Covid mitigations in place as “farcical”.

Their calls for a speedier return to indoor service follow a plea from Hospitality Ulster, citing the fact that Coronavirus infection rates are currently lower in Northern Ireland than in England and Scotland.

Scotland has already reopened indoor hospitality, with curfews in place, while England is set to do so on May 17.

Mr Magorrian said: “The demand is there and it would allow us to phase our staff back in. Even if it was only for food and not alcohol that would help.

“We have systems in place and with bad weather there is a limit on what you can do with solely outdoor hospitality.

“The data seems to be good and if that remains the case then earlier reopening would certainly seem to be possible.”

‘Figures are there’

Beannchor group managing director Bill Wolsey hit out at the current situation, saying “anything that accelerates a return to ‘normal’ hospitality has got to be a good thing “.

He added: “The figures seem to be there to back that up. Only a scientist backed by a politician could come up with what we have now.

“In our properties we’ve only been able to open up about a third or outdoor space but when you have people standing in queues for two or three hours it’s impossible to ensure they are socially distancing.”

Mark McCrory, owner of The Dirt Duck Ale House in Holywood, echoed calls for a speedy return for  indoor hospitality if the data continues to hold up.

“We are ready and prepared if the infection rate and hospital admissions stay low. Let’s see what the next week brings.

“Certainly coming back would be a godsend for the industry and the staff,” he added.

Pressing the case for a return to indoor trade, Hospitality Ulster chief executive Colin Neill said: “We are starting to see high immunity levels, very low prevalence levels and strong vaccine efficacy against transmission, therefore our Executive should have increasing confidence to make decisions to press ahead to bring forward dates for reopening here and accelerate the removal of restrictions.”

‘Uphill battle’

The appeal comes as hospitality bosses in England lost a legal challenge for a faster reopening of indoor dining and drinking.

The High Court ruled in favour of the government after a case was brought by Punch Taverns founder Hugh Osmond, and Sacha Lord, the night-time economy adviser for Greater Manchester.

The High Court rejected a case seeking earlier reopening in England

Mr Lord and Mr Osmond argued there was no scientific justification for hospitality to be kept closed for five weeks, after shops  in England were allowed to serve customers indoors from mid-April.

Mr Lord said: “While this fight has always been an uphill battle… we are pleased that the case has shone a light on the hospitality sector and the unfair and unequal guidance within the recovery roadmap.

“Despite the outcome, we will continue to hold the government to account and demand evidence-based decisions, rather than those drafted without detailed analysis or based on bias or whim.”