Ahead of new Covid restrictions coming into effect, Liberal
Democrat MPs have called for an emergency hospitality summit to
save businesses on the brink.
With some restaurants already losing half their Christmas
bookings, and footfall levels in many towns and cities due to
drop off, there is an urgent need for action.
Businesses are increasingly worried about the coming months, with
today's GDP figure rising by just 0.1% and tax rises to hit
smaller businesses hard in the new year.
Liberal Democrat Health Spokesperson and the party's Business
Spokesperson , have written to the
Business Minister demanding action.
Liberal Democrat said:
"Boris' botched and rushed announcement of more Covid
restrictions without offering any new support for our hospitality
sector is a scandal.
"Our treasured pubs, restaurant and entertainment venues cannot
withstand another grim Christmas. Independent businesses
have worked hard and played by the rules throughout this
pandemic, even when it has cost them dearly. In return, the
government is pulling the rug from underneath their recovery from
covid.
"There is no time to waste. We need an emergency package to save
our town and city centres. The Government needs to hear directly
from hospitality businesses what is needed for them to stay
afloat, and then act upon it."
ENDS
NOTES TO EDITOR
Full letter:
To: (Minister responsible for pubs
and Covid business support)
Dear Minister
Urgent Hospitality Summit
We are writing to you in light of reports that pubs and
hospitality businesses are seeing unprecedented rates of booking
cancellations for the festive period. As the Minister responsible
for hospitality and Covid business support, you will be aware
that this sector relies heavily on the peak Christmas season to
offset the impact of the slower months in the new year.
The festive season in 2020 was a write off, with businesses
losing their peak trading period completely as a result of public
health regulations necessary to protect us all from the Covid
pandemic. But at that time, there were at least business grant
schemes, and additional funding schemes in place that local
authorities could allocate to this struggling sector.
Hospitality businesses are telling us that confidence from their
customers has plummeted with news of the potential impact of
Omicron, and cancellations of 50% of bookings were not uncommon
even before the announcement today of the move to Plan B
restrictions. With the addition of work from home measures
reducing high street footfall, and further discouraging workplace
gatherings in advance of Christmas, the sector has been dealt
another hammer blow with no prospect of support in the
pipeline.
Hospitality venues who are to be required to administer the Covid
Passport system will incur extra staffing costs in many cases.
The crashing of the NHS app within hours of the Prime Minister’s
announcement will do nothing to assure businesses that this
illiberal scheme can operate smoothly.
Supply chain disruptions mean in many they’ve already paid to
secure the stock for the season. Much of this can’t be stored for
the future, and even the small proportion that can will cause
immediate cashflow disruption in already struggling
businesses.
Hospitality workers will also see hours cut as demand drops. Many
have had to isolate due to Covid infection, or close contact with
suspected Omicron cases. In the absence of government support, in
common with retail, these workers can be left in dire financial
straits. They need help today.
We need an urgent hospitality summit to bring together
representatives from hospitality, leisure and the supply chains
with hospitality workers and government, to put in place an
emergency plan to save our pubs, restaurants, hotels and
nightlife from collapse.
We look forward to hearing from you as soon as possible, with
your proposals to convene such a summit.
, Liberal Democrat Deputy
Leader and Health Spokesperson
, Liberal Democrat Business
Spokesperson
