It's nice to metre you

 Govt to study halving guidance on staying apart  Pub boost as reopening date moved forward  HSE battling homes & meat plant outbreaks

- NEIL LESLIE

THE Government is to study halving social distancing guidelines to one metre.

It’s understood public health chiefs fought to keep the strict two-metre rule amid yesterday’s sweeping measures to exit lockdown.

The National Public Health Emergency Team did not want to sign off on reducing the distance despite the WHO advising that people stay a minimum of one metre apart.

Taoiseach Leo Varadkar said guidelines will be issued next week to the hospitality sector on how to implement social distancing.

Chief Medical Officer Dr Tony Holohan added there was no evidence to recommend reducing the two-metre rule. A change in the advice will be vital for many firms to survive.

The two-metre guide will drastically reduce the capacity of hospitals and schools while a reduction would be crucial to getting public transport working and to allowing crowds to return to sporting grounds.

Pubs were celebrating after getting the go-ahead to open on June 29 if they serve food, with the rest brought forward from August 10 to the new lockdown exit deadline of July 20.

However, the Vintners Federation of Ireland said many will never open again with the two-metre rule reducing capacity by up to 87% of standing customers and 65% of those seated in a typical bar layout.

Chief Padraig Cribben added: “Altering social distancing guidelines to one metre remains a priority as this would give publicans some chance of running a viable business until a time when social distancing rules no longer apply. So it would simply not be viable for many pubs to run a business.”