Thai gov’t warns everybody to DRINK RESPONSIBLY

With alcohol now allowed to be served at restaurants in some key tourism cities, the Department of Health has assumed the authority to insist drinkers act responsibly.
Despite this obviously having nothing to do with the spread of a virus, the Director General has warned people to continue practicing personal protective measures against COVID-19.

Restaurants are also warned not to serve alcohol beyond the permitted hours.

Restaurants in Bangkok, Phuket, Krabi, and Phang Nga are now permitted to serve alcoholic drinks, as the government looks to stimulate tourism activities.

The Department of Health today urged restaurants and customers to comply with all the restrictions that remain, including the limit of serving hours outlined by provincial communicable diseases committees.

The Department of Health’s Director-General, Suwanchai Wattanayingcharoenchai, said most restaurants are found complying well with the regulations, while some restaurants and their customers might become quite loose with the compliance.

He asked restaurants and customers not to serve or consume alcohol beyond the permitted hours and to prevent overcrowding at venues.

Dr. Suwanchai said lower cognitive abilities in intoxicated persons would lead to more chances of breaching disease control measures, adding that drinkers must be considerate of their own safety and that of others.

It is only a matter of time before alcohol sales are banned again on the grounds that citizens are not, in somebody’s opinion, acting responsibly.

Source - BangkokJack

Thai pub's new rules for Re-opening - Don't Laugh

A meeting between the Centre for Covid-19 Situation Administration (CCSA)’s special taskforce committee and entertainment venue operators resolved that pubs, bars and entertainment venues could be allowed to open from July 1 provided they strictly observe following 22 practices:

• Controlling the number of patrons to ensure the venue does not get congested;

• Checking every customer and staff member’s temperature;

• Providing alcohol-based hand sanitising gel at all entrances and other areas as necessary;

• Ensuring groups are no bigger than five;

• Ensuring customers queuing to be seated maintain social distancing;

• Ensuring all tables are at least 2 metres apart or are partitioned;

• Ensuring seats are at least one metre apart;

• Ensuring all venues are properly ventilated;

• Only eating and drinking is allowed;

• Beverages can only be served individually, and shared jugs or ice buckets are prohibited;

• Serving staff are required to wear a mask or face shield at all times;

• Stage or performance area must be partitioned, and audience must be at least 2 metres away from the stage;

• Event comperes or speakers are required to wear a face shield at all times;

• Patrons are not allowed to be loud or walk around the venue if not necessary;

• If the sharing of food or beverages cannot be avoided, everyone at the table must be provided with an individual serving spoon or glass;

• Toilets must be cleaned every 30 to 60 minutes;

• All tables, chairs and frequently touched surfaces must be cleaned regularly;

• No sports matches or competitions that will attract large groups of people are allowed;

• No video gaming or pub games like pool and darts will be allowed;

• Social distancing measures must be observed in smoking areas;

• No service personnel or public relations representatives are allowed to sit with customers.

Source - The Nation