On-trade

2 in 5 feel very uncomfortable with 1 metre Social Distancing

Over one in five (21.3%) respondents to a Central Statistics Office survey report feeling very uncomfortable with the prospect of going to a pub or bar with two metres Social Distancing. And those feeling very uncomfortable with the prospect of going to a pub almost doubles to 39.5% when Social Distancing is reduced from two metres to one.
Those feeling very uncomfortable with the prospect of going to a pub almost doubles to 39.5% when Social Distancing is reduced from two metres to one.

Those feeling very uncomfortable with the prospect of going to a pub almost doubles to 39.5% when Social Distancing is reduced from two metres to one.

The latest set of pub stats form part of the results from the second round of the Social Impact of Covid-19 survey by the Central Statistics Office.

This survey collected information on levels of comfort or discomfort people feel about the prospect of undertaking a range of activities in public as Covid-19 restrictions are eased as part of the government’s strategy to re-open businesses and society.

Four in five (82.0%) report feeling uncomfortable or very uncomfortable attending a large outdoor event with no Social Distancing while almost half (47.6%) have similar feelings about attending a religious service with Social Distancing.

Almost three in five (57.0%) report feeling uncomfortable or very uncomfortable with sending their child to childcare or a creche.

However almost half of women (47.3%) report feeling comfortable or very comfortable with the prospect of going to a hairdresser/barber compared to one in three (34.9%) men while more than three in five (63.3%) report feeling uncomfortable or very uncomfortable travelling on public transport.

“The findings of the survey illustrate how comfortable or otherwise Irish people are feeling at the prospect of undertaking, what we would have considered to be everyday activities prior to Covid-19 and highlights the impact Covid-19 may have on people’s behaviour into the future,” commented CSO Statistician Brian Cahill of the results, “Respondents express less concern with the prospect of going to a restaurant, with 12.9% indicating they would feel very uncomfortable with two metres Social Distancing and 28.7% with one metre Social Distancing.

“The effects of Covid-19 may impact the behaviour of women and men in Irish society in different ways. For example, this survey finds that men report feeling more comfortable than women with the prospect of going to a pub or a restaurant, with 32.2% reporting they’d feel comfortable or very comfortable going to a pub with two metres Social Distancing compared to 23.1% of women.

“While women report feeling less comfortable than men going out to socialise (eg to a pub or a restaurant), women feel more comfortable at the prospect of having six people visit their home, with 47.1% of women reporting they were comfortable or very comfortable with this, compared to 44.8% of men.

“Respondents with lower levels of general health or who are more concerned with their own health, someone else’s health or other people’s ability to comply with government Covid-19 advice, have higher levels of discomfort with the prospect of engaging in activities in public. For example, of those respondents who rate their health as fair/bad/very bad one-third (33.9%) report feeling very uncomfortable with the prospect of going to a pub with two metres Social Distancing while those with good health or very good health report 19.6% and 19.2% respectively.”

The CSO’s Covid-19 survey utilised an online electronic questionnaire and telephone interviewing to produce a final achieved sample size of 1,693 individuals.

 

 


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