Hospitality venues in Northern Ireland saddled with four-week 'circuit breaker' closure - updated
The measures were announced this morning (14 October) by First Minister Arlene Foster in an address to the Northern Ireland Assembly in Stormont.
A complete closure of the hospitality sector, apart from for deliveries and takeaways, is among the new restrictions being imposed by the executive.
Fast-food and takeaway premises continuing to operate will also be subject to an 11pm curfew.
Other measures announced include ordering off-licences and supermarkets to not sell alcohol beyond 8pm; a complete shutdown of 'close-contact services' apart from those meeting essential health needs; and a ban on indoor sport of any kind.
Schools will also be closed for a two week period that encompasses the half term break.
It comes as Northern Ireland reported 863 new cases of the virus yesterday (13 October), with seven more Coronavirus-related deaths recorded.
Trade NI, an alliance of Hospitality Ulster, Manufacturing NI and Retail NI, warned yesterday (13 October) that a new lockdown on business would cripple Northern Ireland’s economy and potentially set it back decades.
In a joint statement, the chief executives of the three trade said the shutdown would 'cause economic devastation, resulting in tens of thousands of job losses which will have a huge impact on communities'.
“No effective help is being offered to those businesses that will be forced to close as a result of a loss of trade, footfall and consumers, nor those who will lose their incomes over these difficult winter months.
“The viability of business is important to keep people in work at a time when the unemployment count in the last six months has doubled. If predictions are correct, we could expect a further 40,000 redundancies before Christmas, potentially more.”
*Article updated at 10:55am on 14 October to reflect the First Minister's confirmation of the new restrictions.
