Kerry TD Michael Healy Rae has said it is time to trust the Irish people to act responsibly in pubs.

The National Public Health Emergency Team is giving its latest advice to Government this afternoon on proceeding to Phase Four of reopening.

Ministers will then decide whether the country’s pubs can open as planned from next Monday; however, there are concerns the recent spike in COVID-19 cases will see them asked to remain closed.

On The Pat Kenny Show this morning, pub owner and independent TD Michael Healy Rae said officials need to trust people to “act and behave responsibly if our public houses are allowed to open.”

“I trust the customers,” he said. “We will all behave properly but all we need is to be given a chance.

“I want the Government, for god’s sake, to do something sensible. Every breathing move they have made since this government was formed, they have gone from one calamity or disaster to another. Every one of them made by themselves.

“I am asking them to take a deep breath when they are going in the Cabinet room today. I want them to use every grey cell that god gave them and I want them to listen to the people of Ireland.

“The people of Ireland are saying, allow our pubs to open and we will handle the rest after that but please give us that opportunity.”

Deputy Healy Rae said he is fearful the Government will postpone the reopening once again or “put so many restrictions in place and tie the publicans up in knots so that it would actually make it not feasible or operable for them to open their premises.”

He said Ireland’s publicans are “respectable people who have been minding their customers over many decades and generations in some cases.”

“I am fighting on their behalf but also on behalf of the customers who want to go back in to their local pub,” he said.

“I actually believe it would be good for people’s public health. I think it would be good for the safety of people to allow the pubs to open because it would spread us out more evenly.

“As it is, people are heading to the venues that are open - the restaurants and that - and they are congregating into those places. If every premises was open, it would spread us out more fairly and more evenly.”

Mellets Pub In Swinford, Mayo

On the same show, Marie Mellett of Mellett's Emporium in Swinford, County Mayo said this afternoon is make or break for many pubs in Ireland.

She said it is “nonsense” to allow pubs that serve food to open while others stay shut.

“At the same time, I can understand why publicans have done it because it is five months now and we can’t afford to be closed for any longer,” she said.

“I am afraid that if we can’t open next Monday, that could be the end of a lot of pubs in Ireland.”

Ms Mellet, who is part of the seventh generation of her family to run the pub, said it has never been closed this long in 223 years.

It is just not going to be sustainable. We need to open and we need to get the last remaining weeks of summer. If we don’t open until September, we have lost out on all of our summer trade and that can’t be clawed back in September.

She said the Government must introduce one rule that treats all pubs the same with strict enforcement to ensure that anyone found to be acting irresponsibly will lose their license.

You can listen back to the segment here:

This article has been updated. Read more here