Save the pubs in new Covid crackdown
Bosses plead to stay open as Sturgeon prepares to unveil new restrictions
PUB bosses have begged Nicola Sturgeon not to shut them down as she prepares to announce a new corona crackdown today.
Bar closures are being considered as part of a new set of coronavirus restrictions to be introduced on Friday, the Daily Record understands.
Other options believed to be on the table include daytime-only opening for restaurants.
Glasgow club owner Donald MacLeod last night pleaded for pubs to remain open, saying: “It strikes me that the Scottish Government will only stop once they have completely wrecked certain sectors, including entertainment, travel and leisure.
“It’s a worrying, distressing time for so many of us but just as we hope for good news, it seems there is only bad news round the corner.”
The Scottish Government is expected to announce details today on additional lockdown measures to tackle the country’s rising levels of coronavirus.
The First Minister recently pushed through a nationwide ban on visiting other people’s houses and a 10pm curfew for hospitality venues.
However, infection levels continue to worry the Government and Sturgeon is expected to announce new curbs.
The Daily Record has seen a list of potential options which could last for 16 days, starting on Friday.
These includes pub closures and restaurants having their hours restricted and not being able to serve alcohol.
Other options considered by the Scottish Government include: ● Closure of visitor attractions. ● A ban on contact sports – but not professional sport.
Further restrictions on places of worship to limit indoor contact.
However, a final decision on these proposed measures will be reached at a Scottish Government Cabinet meeting this morning.
A source said the Government is also looking at different restrictions applying to different types of hospitality venue.
At her daily briefing yesterday, Sturgeon confirmed the new measures will not include a national travel ban.
People will not be asked to stay at home and she also ruled out schools closing.
She said: “We are not proposing another lockdown at this stage. Not even on a temporary basis.”
The Government has banned social visits to homes and Sturgeon dropped strong hint pubs and bars will face greater restrictions, saying: “It does, of course, bring into scope hospitality because, other than in our own homes, pubs, bars and restaurants, these are the kind of places, other than at our work, that we come into contact with other people.”
Jason Leitch, Scotland’s national clinical director, added: “If you were designing somewhere for the virus to spread, would it include a one-metre distancing exemption, poorer ventilation, more crowds, alcohol and a place where you could mix households? It’s harsh but yes, it probably would. And that’s what some of hospitality looks like.
“If I am asked by the First Minister, ‘Where is the risk?’, then I think it’s in people’s households and I think it’s other places where households mix.
“And that of course leads you into a conversation about what you can do with hospitality.”
Leitch suggested a one-size-fits-all
policy for every venue may not be appropriate. He said: “Hospitality is not one homogeneous thing. A daytime cafe for single parents and elderly people who come for their lunch that day is very different from the night-time economy.”
Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the Scottish Beer and Pub Association, said: “Pubs and the wider hospitality sector in Scotland are already suffering from the additional restrictive measures currently in place. The ban on background music and noise from televisions has already seen trade fall of a cliff for many premises and the 10pm curfew has had a disproportionate impact in Scotland due to the normal closing time being midnight or 1am.
“This means that every week Scottish pubs are losing as many as 21 hours more trade than pubs elsewhere in the UK.
“If the Scottish Government is to implement further harsh restrictive measures to our sector, it must include a dedicated package of support alongside it. Without it, the Scottish Government will leave our pubs and thousands of jobs doomed.”
Stephen Montgomery, spokesman for the Scottish Hospitality Group, said: “We’ve been warning the Government for weeks that their approach is catastrophic for an industry which is vital to the fight against Covid-19 and for local economies across the country. We must have grant funding to ensure we can keep trading.”
Nic Wood, boss of the 22-strong Signature Pubs chain, said: “Young people in Scotland will again bear a disproportionate amount of the burden.”
The First Minister said yesterday that 800 new coronavirus cases had been recorded in Scotland in the past 24 hours. This is 13.2 per cent of newly tested individuals, up from 12.8 per cent the previous day.
Of the new cases, 303 are in Greater Glasgow and Clyde, 167 in Lanarkshire and 164 in Lothian. A total of 33,706 people have tested positive for the virus in Scotland, up from 32,906.