By Sean Moriarty

A Killarney restaurateur has warned that Killarney could lose out to Northern Irish destinations as a result of the Government’s continued stance on indoor dining.

A recent report in a national daily newspaper said that people from the Republic of Ireland are travelling north of the border to enjoy indoor dining and pubs while they remain closed down south.

Deirdre Browne, who is a partner in Murphy Brownes on High St, says this flies in the face of the Government’s promotion of staycationing this summer and that Killarney could loose its status as Ireland’s top tourism destination as a result.

“People just want normality at this stage,” she told the Killarney Advertiser. “If you saw the rain that fell over the weekend,it just does not make sense.”

The Irish Independent article said over half of the people visiting Belfast on a recent weekend were from the Republic of Ireland and many had travelled from Cork and Kerry.

“We need to be allowed open in a controlled manner and make Killarney the holiday destination it is supposed to be,” she added.

She was one of organisers behind last Thursday's protest outside Killarney Town Hall where local hospitality and allied sector workers voiced their anger at the prolonged closures.

“People were thrilled that we did it,” she added. “They saw that we stood up, that we had a voice.”