WHAT WILL HAPPEN TO NIGHTLIFE IN WALES?
As businesses wait for announcement on reopening, we look at the options...
A
FTER three-and-a-half months in lockdown, it seems like a lifetime since we were able to enjoy a pint at our local or watch live music with friends.
Venues across Wales were forced to shut their doors after the UK Government announced all pubs and restaurants would need to close from March 20 in order to stop the spread of coronavirus.
In England, Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced on Tuesday that pubs will be permitted to re-open on July 4, with social distancing measures of “one metre plus” in place.
However, here in Wales, the Welsh Government has taken a more cautious approach and more than three months on, it is still unclear how pubs and clubs will reopen as of yet.
There have been discussions of a phased approach to lockdown measures easing, but no dates have been given, and the lack of information has caused some alarm among venues in Wales.
So, how might the future of nightlife look in Wales?
BEST CASE SCENARIO
The best case scenario for nightlife lovers in Wales at the moment is that pubs, bars and music venues re-open when the Welsh Government gives the go-ahead that it is safe to do so, with special measures, such as reduced capacity, in place to protect customers.
“Under some kind of guidelines maybe people would need to get their temperature taken or get tested before they come in; we might have to control capacity,” said Gary Lulham, who runs entertainment venue Sin City in Swansea.
“I can’t imagine how we’d do it, but there might be a limit on the amount of drinks you’d have or perhaps when you can buy drinks.”
In Cardiff, one of the city centre’s busiest bars, the Philharmonic, has started putting measures in place for when doors do re-open.
“At the Philharmonic, we’ve had a thermal imaging camera fitted this week,” said Nick Newman, chairman of Cardiff Licensees Forum and general manager of the Philharmonic.
“We’ve mapped out a one-way path around the building, we’ll have perspex screens like you see in supermarkets, we have an app ready to go.”
Gary says it is interesting to look elsewhere and see how other countries have handled the reopening of their venues.
“There’s a club in Germany opening up during the day and you buy a ticket and take a seat and they play a half an hour set of hard dance or trance music,” said Gary.
“It’s a little half an hour show, with all the lights going and the speakers banging, but you’re not allowed to get up out of your chair.
“In a venue that would normally stand 300-400 people, there’s about 50 people sat down. And then they all get up and leave, the chairs are disinfected, and they bring the next lot in.”
As of now, it is unclear as to when the Welsh Government’s phased approach to re-opening could potentially go ahead.
“I’ve got a full calendar of events from September to November ready to go. I’ve just got to push the button,” said Gary.
Nick says the Philharmonic is ready to reopen to the public when the Welsh Government provides some sort of guidance and plan for them to do so.
“This is what the Welsh Government has got to understand, they’ve got to get behind us and give us a clear steer,” said Nick.
However, for live music venues at least, there is a worry there may not be a possibility to return at all.
Venues across Wales have come together to ask the UK Government for some sort of financial assistance and earlier this week more than 500 venues across the UK sent a letter to the Government asking for a sector specific support package
There is a real fear that if this help does not arrive soon, the sector may be hit with the worst case scenario.
WORST CASE SCENARIO
At the moment, despite looking ahead to how they may approach a phased re-opening, many venues in
Wales will not be able to do so without some sort of financial assistance.
Even if they were to get the goahead to reopen from a safety perspective, it simply would not be possible for many of them from a financial standpoint.
With this being the case, many may need to stay closed for the foreseeable future.
“I don’t particularly want to reopen until we can reopen at full capacity and I think the Government should be looking at sector specific support,” said Sam Dabb, who runs Le Pub in Newport city centre.
Sam is Welsh co-coordinator at the Music Venue Trust, the organisation behind the letter to the UK Government.
Research carried out by the trust in