Checks on Covid certs show high levels of compliance, Ministers hear

over 2 years in The Irish Times

Checks on the use of Covid certs over the weekend showed high levels of compliance, a meeting of senior Ministers was told on Tuesday evening.
Government sources said the Cabinet subcommittee on Covid received an update on a sweep of compliance checks taken over the bank holiday weekend from officers from the Health and Safety Authority, Environmental Health Officers from the HSE and inspectors from the Private Security Authority.
They were carried out on indoor hospitality venues such as pubs, restaurants and nightclubs across Ireland from Friday to Monday, Ministers were told, with Government figures indicating that “very high levels” of compliance were found in relation to the use of Covid certs.
The subcommittee also heard an update on the regulators forum which met a week ago, providing information on the HSA inspections throughout 2021 on Covid 19 and the work safety protocol, Fáilte Ireland checks on compliance with the Covid-19 safety charter, with a high level of compliance between June and October.
There were also discussions on future work from the HSE on checks to include nightclubs, who will be asked to work closely with the HSE environmental health service.
Tánaiste Leo Varadkar on Tuesday admitted there would be “teething problems and implementation problems” in reopening the night-time economy with a ticketing system.
He said policies in the area will be kept under review following a backlash from industry groups, but gave no indication that requests for a two-week delay to implementation of the new rules would be accepted.
Representatives from the hospitality sector said they were seeking a two-week delay on enforcing new ticketing requirements for events in late bars and pubs, which would see patrons required to acquire an electronic ticket an hour before admission.
There is also pushback from the sector over stipulations that congregations cannot occur outside venues, with the industry complaining that it has no role in controlling the public street.

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