The BC Restaurant Association says government should have given more notice for scaling back hours tonight for restaurants.

President Ian Tostenson says the industry only found out when Dr. Bonnie Henry announced it yesterday afternoon, that they would have to close by 9 p.m. tonight and stop serving alcohol by 8 p.m.

“We know restaurants are frantically phoning their patrons and saying, ‘we have you in for 8 o’clock, and can we change it? Because we can’t accommodate you,'” Tostenson tells NL News.

“So I think the lesson here is, and we’re making this point with Dr. Henry, we should’ve had this conversation a month ago. Because we knew New Year’s was coming. This was no surprise to anybody.”

The province is cutting short booze sales tonight for liquor stores, restaurants, bars and grocery stores, to try and discourage gatherings for New Year’s Eve.

“We are concerned leading into New Year’s Eve particularly in some of our resort communities and some of the areas that we have traditionally seen parties develop. Sometimes spontaneously. And often, from a public health perspective, that is fuelled by people indulging a bit too much in alcohol,” Henry said yesterday while announcing the new order.

Since the summer, restaurants have had to close by 11 p.m. and stop serving booze by 10 p.m., and that mandate will return for New Year’s Day.