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More than 750,000 sector jobs lost without urgent government support, trade bodies warn: More than 750,000 hospitality jobs will be lost without urgent government support, sector trade bodies have warned. It comes as UKHospitality, the British Institute of Innkeeping and the British Beer & Pub Association revealed the “grim” results of their latest sector-wide survey today (Sunday, 18 October). The findings, from a second survey of members of all three trade associations conducted by CGA, paint a “catastrophic” picture, as the new three tier system comes into force and has been extended to London, York, Lancashire and other areas, with further announcements expected imminently. More than three quarters (76%) of businesses were loss making and, worryingly, said the trade bodies the “grave” outlook revealed by the survey reflected views largely canvassed before the full impacts of the tier system were announced, and so are likely to be an under-estimation of the acute difficulties of the sector’s immediate prospects, unless new government support is forthcoming. With furlough ending in just over two weeks, and the Job Support Scheme not viable for most hospitality businesses that have seen their cash flows decimated since restrictions have increased, the survey showed by February 2021, more than 750,000 jobs will be lost against employment figures from February 2020 without further government support. Almost 50% of respondents believe the restrictions in place will reduce their turnover by at least half this winter. The prediction for total business failure by the end of 2020 is now estimated to be more than one in four. More than 50% of businesses are now expected to fail before the end of the first quarter in 2021. Businesses in the “medium” and “high” risk tiers announced by the government are in “no man’s land”, the trade bodies said. They added without the benefit of furlough and government disruption grants, businesses will be under pressure to trade with an “impossibly” low level of custom, “forcing them to make large sections of their staff redundant and to close their doors, potentially for ever”. The trade bodies have urged the government to urgently rethink the support offered to hospitality businesses across all three tiers, “to avoid unprecedented levels of unemployment and business failure across the sector”. They said there must be an immediate, sector-specific extension of the Jobs Support Scheme with no employer contribution until restrictions are lifted for all tiers; government disruption grants should be made available for all venues, across all tiers; and a review of any restrictions placed on venues must take place at least every fortnight. Safeguarding hospitality venues against business failure is the priority and without these measures in place, the sector, the trade bodies said, “will not survive to provide the employment and tax revenue that will be needed for a safe and sustainable recovery in 2021 and beyond”. A spokesman for the trade bodies said: “There can be no doubt of the devastating impact the government’s restrictions are having on hospitality and pub businesses across the UK. Without urgent sector-specific support for our industry, massive business failure is imminent and hundreds of thousands of jobs will be lost around Christmas from a sector that was in growth at the beginning of this year, as well as in the supply chain that supports them. While there are any restrictions placed on hospitality and pubs, there must be financial support in place across all tiers of risk.”