Taoiseach: Takeaway drink gatherings in Cork city centre 'undermine' Covid efforts

The Taoiseach said he will be contacting Minister for Justice Helen McEntee today as they seek to find better ways of curbing impromptu crowds gathering in public.
Images emerged over the weekend on social media of large crowds gathered between South Mall and Grand Parade in Cork city on Saturday evening, despite strict Covid-19 guidelines on public gatherings.
Mr Martin told
he was very concerned after seeing the pictures.“It was disappointing to see the large crowds who had gathered. It is unacceptable.
“It endangers the efforts of all within society who are doing everything to adhere to our current restrictions. We are all working so hard to keep the level of cases down.
“It also undermines the efforts of our frontline workers and our hospitals.
“We need to reduce the number of cases in our hospitals and the number of ICU beds being used.”
The Taoiseach said he will be contacting Minister for Justice Helen McEntee today as they seek to find better ways of curbing impromptu crowds gathering in public.
“We will get a report from the gardaí following the events of last weekend. We will discuss in greater detail this new phenomenon of takeaway drink. We will review it accordingly.
“If it is leading to large congregations it will cause major harm going forward. Over the next 48 hours, we will review whether we will allow people to keep purchasing takeaway drink. ”
Mr Martin called on the general public to keep doing their best to ensure the nation can celebrate Christmas with reduced Covid-19 restrictions. “The next few weeks are crucial.
“We have to get the numbers down. What happened on Saturday night in Cork undermined that effort.
“The whole objective is to ensure we can have a good Christmas,” the Taoiseach added.
