A nightclub promoter says several venues may not open when restrictions are lifted without clarity around capacity.
Nightclubs are set to fully re-open their doors from October 22nd, subject to public health advice.
Vaccination certificates will no longer be needed to go to an indoor restaurant, pub or other venue.
While face coverings will not need to be worn except on public transport, in indoor shops and in hospitals and other healthcare settings.
Buzz O'Neill-Maxwell is a Dublin nightclub promoter. He told Pat Kenny it has to be financially viable.
"We're just asking for some clarity here; we're 16 days out.
"The announcement around October 22nd was made six weeks ago, so you would imagine that a framework of guidelines are sitting on some senior official in some department's desk - are they going to share them with us?
"We have a situation where we have possible capacities, or it may not be October 22nd.
"This Government love PR, they love spin, they love a big moment.
"The reality is if they open nightclubs in this city with reduced capacity - or if they propose to - and if those capacities are a lot less than is financially viable, a lot of us won't open.
"And their big weekend is going to be a big flop."
He says they are seeking certainty before they go further.
"We're asking for clear guidelines today: we want to know how many people we can allow into our spaces safely.
"When you look at the body language, and the actual language by Micheál Martin when he made this announcement several weeks ago, they never have said 'definitely and 100%'.
"They say 'maybe and hopefully' - and even as of yesterday, it's 'most restrictions will hopefully or possibly be lifted'".
'We want to make it the safest place'
Buzz says the ultimate decider on capacity depends on fire regulations.
"The capacity of every space that you go into - be it a bar, restaurant, hotel - is set out by the fire officer.
"And it's up to you as a promoter or the venue management to enforce that.
"We just want to get open, but we want to know under what circumstances we can open - there's absolutely no reason why the Taoiseach cannot make a statement this evening."
But he says they have not received data as yet from pilot events.
"We are waiting on that - and if they're waiting to collate that information before they make their decision, and before they sit down with NPHET, then we're going to be faced with the same ridiculous situation of getting our guidelines seven days, five days or four days like our colleagues in the bar, hotel and restaurant industries".
Buzz says nightclubs will do what they have to, at least in the beginning.
"We want to make it the safest place people can be in - and if that means vaccine passports then so be it.
"If they really push us on antigen testing, if we have to do that for the first couple of months we will."
