Premier Inn owner Whitbread warns it could axe 6,000 staff

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Ministers have been warned that a 10pm curfew on pubs and restaurants will be the ‘final nail in the coffin’ for many businesses still treading water after the initial shutdown. 

Exasperated hospitality sector bosses are crying out for clarity over whether the 10pm curfew is the point they must clear the premises, which is feared would slash revenues by 50 per cent and cause a jobs bloodbath.

Boris Johnson will spell out the tightening of restrictions in the House of Commons today before making a televised address to the nation tonight.

The measures are being brought in to wrestle down the spread of the virus after the government’s top two scientists, professors Chris Whitty and Patrick Vallance, warned of 50,000 daily cases by mid-October.

But the pub trade has reacted furiously that they will bear the brunt of the Government’s crackdown and point to Public Health England figures that illustrate a low spread of Covid-19 in hospitality settings.

Of the 729 outbreaks in the week to September 13, only five per cent occurred in food outlets such as restaurants and pubs – 45 per cent in care homes, 21 per cent in schools and 18 per cent in places of work.  

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of trade body UK Hospitality, urged the Government to heed its own statistics and said the curfew could take a sledgehammer to the industry which is already ‘on its knees’.

Speaking this morning to BBC Radio 4’s Today programme, she said: ‘People will think it’s not that significant, but it really will have a big economic impact on jobs, not just on pubs, but also for cafes and restaurants.’ 

Her concerns were echoed by Martin Wolstencroft, head of Arch Inspirations, which runs 17 bars and restaurants in Leeds, Manchester, York and Newcastle, who said the curfew will not make it viable to open some of venues.

He said: ‘The 10pm curfew will be absolutely devastating for our business. It’s just such disastrous news. We’ve worked so hard after lockdown to build up our business after 12 weeks, to build up the confidence of our teams and our customers.

‘We’ve done really well in Eat Out to Help Out to get ourselves moving again. So to hear this news this week, it’s so frustrating. We may as well not open some of our bars. 

‘After 10pm is really when we start making money because that’s when we get busier and it won’t cover our costs during the day. 

‘It’s just really frustrating, we don’t know how long it’s going to be for or what happens next. It’s going to be the final nail in the coffin for many many operators. It’s just disastrous news.’  

Ms Nicholls said ministers urgently need to clarify whether the 10pm curfew is when trading must cease or whether it is when pubs must shut – which would restrict most outlets to just one sitting. 

Ms Nicholls ‘It depends how the government frames this. If they draft it as cease trading at 10pm, the impact will be lessened, but if as in the North East and North West, where you have to clear the premises and empty the premises and have it closed up by 10pm, that will have a significant economic impact. 

‘In effect it reduces revenue by 50 per cent because you need to call last orders for food by 9pm, so you can get everyone out of the door, so you can only have one sitting. 

‘And with pubs now fully seated and table service, the same applies to pubs. Although it’s a small change, it will wipe out the shift of jobs at the end of the evening.’       

The pandemic has already taken a toll on the hospitality sector, which has suffered a rout on jobs as footfall nosedived and venues were forced to shutter. 

Premier Inn owner Whitbread this morning warned it could axe up to 6,000 jobs as the coronavirus crisis continues to hit demand for hotel stays. 

The hospitality company also owns Brewers Fayre, Beefeater and Table Table restaurants, while operating around 800 Premier Inns across the country. 

Thousands of jobs have been lost across Britain as the financial impact of Covid-19 continues to hit the economy. 

Data released this month shows more than 300,000 jobs were put at risk of redundancy in June and July – nearly seven times higher than last year’s levels. 

Restaurant and hotel chains have been hit hard during the pandemic, after many were forced to close during the first months of the coronavirus lockdown.

Costa Coffee, which was sold by Whitbread last year, has said 1,650 staff are at risk of redundancy as it looks to cut costs.

Coffee and sandwich chain Pret a Manger confirmed it has axed 2,800 roles from its shops, while Pizza Express plans to permanently shut 73 of its restaurants, putting 1,100 jobs at risk.

On September 9, Lloyds Bank announced it was cutting 865 jobs, just days after the Cooperative Bank revealed it was to axe around 350 jobs from up and down the country and close 18 branches.

Last month Natwest Group announced it too was cutting 550 jobs in branches across the UK and closing one of its remaining offices in London.