Section 22 of the Public Health (Alcohol) Act 2018 provides for the separation and visibility of alcohol products and advertisements for alcohol products in specified licensed premises.
Under this provision, mixed trade retailers can store alcohol products in a storage unit behind the counter at only one point of sale area and can also display and advertise alcohol products using one of the following three options:
- A separate area of the shop separated by a physical barrier which has a minimum height of not less than 1.2 metres and through which alcohol and advertisements for alcohol are not visible
or
- Enclosed adjacent storage units on the shop floor in which the products are not visible up to a minimum height of 1.5 metres
or
- A maximum of three adjacent units, each of 1 metre width and 2.2 metres high.
I commenced section 22 of the Act in November 2018. It will become operational with effect from 12 November 2020 in line with the two year lead-in period provided in the legislation.
On 9 May the “Return to Work Safely Protocol - COVID-19 Specific National Protocol for Employers and Workers” was published. It provides clear guidance to employers and to workers on the measures that must be taken to prevent the spread of COVID-19 in the workplace. The Protocol was developed through the cooperation of the Health and Safety Authority, the Department of Business, Enterprise and Innovation, the HSE and my Department. It is designed to be used by all workplaces to adapt their procedures and practices to provide protection against the threat of COVID-19.
