“Just don’t go into them.”
The public have been advised to avoid of any hospitality business which does not request a Covid cert in order to avail of indoor hospitality.
Ina Kelly, the chair of the IMO’s public health committee, told RTÉ Radio 1’s Morning Ireland that businesses need to continue to follow the protocols in place and only allow those who are fully vaccinated to be served indoors.
Under current Covid-19 guidelines, an EU Digital Covid Certificate is required to gain access to indoor hospitality and events.
“We should be watching the environments we go into, and if we feel that they’re not safe, just don’t go into them,” she said.
“It’s important that businesses that are open, that they follow the protocols and I know that many of the businesses that I’ve been in are doing very, very well. They are asking for vaccination certs and they are providing safe spaces for people.
“But if we see places that aren’t safe, it is best not to go into those and we need to try and encourage businesses to follow the protocols as well as possible.
“All of this helps us to keep places open while we have a Covid risk in our communities.”
Chief Medical Officer (CMO) Dr Tony Holohan made similar comments last week when he said people “should leave” if not asked for their Covid certs when entering bars and restaurants.
The CMO also called on the public to “recognise risk environments” and to be “aware of the kinds of activities that we’re involved in that do constitute a higher risk of transmission”.
He also urged people to reduce their number of social contacts as much as they “reasonably can” and to stay away from as many high-risk activities as possible over a period time.
Main image via Leah Farrell / RollingNews.ie
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