As of Thursday bars and restaurants nationwide are required to stop serving alcohol as of midnight and to close their doors no later than 1 am. There is no national limit on the number of customers who can be served.
However, four regions are in an acceleration phase of coronavirus infections and one is seeing a further spread of the epidemic. In these regions, as of Sunday, bars and restaurants must stop serving at 10 pm, and close by 11 pm. In addition, these establishments can serve only half of their rated customer capacity.
The stricter set of restrictions apply to the regions of Uusimaa, Southwest Finland, Pirkanmaa, Kanta-Häme and Ostrobothnia.
All Points North discussed the latest coronavirus news, including rules for bars. You can listen to the full podcast via the embedded player here or via Yle Areena, Spotify, Apple Podcasts or your usual podcast player using the RSS feed.
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Regional government monitoring
On Tuesday, the Helsinki Metropolitan Area's Corona Coordination Group stated that oversight of restaurants in the Uusimaa region will be intensified and the operations of bars and restaurants deemed to pose a risk will be addressed.
In principle, all bars and restaurants are allowed to keep their doors open in accordance with the latest regulations. But any that do not comply with the orders issued under the terms of the Communicable Diseases Act or fail to fulfil their hygiene obligations may have their operations further curtailed or even be close by decision of the Regional State Administrative Agency of Southern Finland.
Yle asked Riku-Matti Lehikoinen, Head of the Alcohol Management Unit in Southern Finland's Regional State Administrative Agency, how bars and restaurants will be supervised and what is considered a high-risk establishment.
How will bars and restaurants be supervised in practice?
“Alcohol inspectors, who normally monitor compliance with alcohol legislation, also monitor compliance with these coronavirus restrictions. We carry out risk-based inspections. When it becomes known that there are deficiencies in the operations of a restaurant, we go on site to do an inspection. Depending on the situation, we will give instructions or orders to the restaurant. For example, we can order a restaurant to cut down on the number of tables if a space seems too cramped. If the deficiencies are severe, we may also order the restaurant to close immediately.”
When do inspections start or have they started?
“Numerous inspections have already been carried out on restaurants in the Uusimaa region since the beginning of June. Monitoring of these new restrictions will begin on Thursday when the restrictions take effect.”
What is a high-risk establishment?
“A high-risk [bar or] restaurant is a one from which infections start or one which for some other reason the city health service or the Helsinki University Hospital district (HUS) considers a risk. That is, when the origin of infections is traced, it can be shown that the chain may have spread from the site in question. The regional agency then conducts an inspection of these sites.
What could be the other reasons you mentioned?
“Reports from the public that a restaurant is not ensuring safe distances or is lacking in hygiene. The public can report either directly to us or to city personnel or HUS.”
What violations are the basis for possible restaurant closures?
“The restaurant must comply with the [designated] opening hours. The restaurant must have an operating model that allows customers to keep a sufficient distance from each other. The customer must be able to find seating at a table. There must be a plan to fight infectious diseases. If any of these provisions are not followed, then we may immediately close the restaurant.”
Has this happened yet?
“As far as I know, at least one such decision was made in August. The restaurant in question was the Old Irish Pub in Vaasa. The landlord had been reprimanded for not complying with the provisions of the Communicable Diseases Act. Despite this, several infections had spread from the pub shortly after the warning was given. At that time, the Regional State Administrative Agency of Western and Inner Finland decided to close the restaurant for a week.”