Bars' alcohol checks outlined

April 3, 2020

Under Secretary for Food & Health Dr Chui Tak-yi:
Concerning the closure of bars, I think the main purpose of this new direction is basically this setting and the behaviour of people attending bars is a high-risk factor for human-to-human transmission in relation to the COVID-19 virus.

In the actual implementation of the regulation, the authorised persons when they visit these venues on-site, they would, through different means, confirm or detect whether it is practising the sale in the majority of alcoholic products, for example. So I think the method or the way they collect evidence can be multiple, for example by visual inspection, by checking what they are providing in that period or over a certain period. So that is the process of evidence collection. 

I think every case would be individual and the evidence collected would be individualised, so I think we cannot predict what is going to happen per case, but I think the principle is the same. Basically, the authorised person would base (it) on what happens on-site or what evidence they can collect to substantiate what they are going to pursue.

For restaurants, I think this regulation mainly pinpoints the setting of a bar, for example when people would stand together they would buy and drink without their mask on and gather together very closely in close proximity, very close distance, so that is the setting and the behaviour that we are addressing. So if it is a restaurant where people will sit down and eat and drink, that is under the other regulation, other direction that we have given to restaurants that they have to keep a distance between tables and they have to limit the number of persons to no more than four.

(To watch the full press briefing with sign language interpretation, click here.)

The Government today said authorised staff will use various means to check if businesses are following new directions on the sale and supply of intoxicating liquors for on-site consumption.

During a press briefing, Under Secretary for Food & Health Dr Chui Tak-yi said the behaviour of people going to bars was a high-risk factor for human-to-human transmission of the COVID-19 virus, which was the main purpose of issuing the new directive.

"In the actual implementation of the regulation, the authorised persons when they visit these venues on-site, they would, through different means, confirm or detect whether it is practising the sale in the majority of alcoholic products.

"The method or the way they collect evidence can be multiple, for example by visual inspection, by checking what they are providing in that period or over a certain period. So that is the process of evidence collection."

Dr Chui added that evidence would be collected on a case-by-case basis.

"Every case would be individual and the evidence collected would be individualised, so I think we cannot predict what is going to happen per case, but I think the principle is the same.

"Basically, the authorised person would base (it) on what happens on-site or what evidence they can collect to substantiate what they are going to pursue."

He also noted that the regulation for restaurants was different to that of bars.

"This regulation mainly pinpoints the setting of a bar, for example when people would stand together they would buy and drink without their mask on and gather together very closely in close proximity, very close distance, so that is the setting and the behaviour that we are addressing.

"So if it is a restaurant where people will sit down and eat and drink, that is under the other regulation, other direction that we have given to restaurants that they have to keep a distance between tables and they have to limit the number of persons to no more than four."