Pub banter is back! – Steve Cardownie

For many people, waking up this morning must be like a child waking up on Christmas Day, with so many presents the welcome dilemma is deciding which one to open first.

A similar situation, then, for many pubgoers as bars are given permission to open today, for the first time since lockdown.

But will it be a return to normal or might a slightly different picture emerge as proprietors consider their options?

There will be a number of factors to take into account, such as, if the social-distancing rule of one metre between customers is to be observed, how many people can I get into the pub, how many staff will I need to cater for them and what will the wage bill be?

Large, spacious bars may be able to cope but the local on the corner may find difficulty in making ends meet, particularly if they do not have an outside option to speak of.

No, for some it would make more financial sense to continue to participate in the furlough scheme, where 80 per cent of staff wages will be paid at least until October, in the hope that matters may have improved by then, rather than run the risk of taking a further financial hit now. But unfortunately for some others the losses sustained during the current crisis have led to them closing their doors for good.

So let’s hope that the pub landscape in Edinburgh will not have changed that much and friends can gather together again in their favourite haunt for the first time in months, enjoying a drink, catching up with each other and enjoying the pub banter that has been sorely missed.

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