It also welcomed the support measures announced by the Government but is pushing for further clarity and speed on them, especially on self-employed help.
Punch CEO Clive Chesser said: “This is clearly a very challenging time for everyone connected to the pub industry and all of us at Punch are fully committed to working in partnership with our publicans to get through it together.
“We continue to support their businesses, now and for the long term, and have suspended the collection of rent, insurance, fixtures and fitting rental, and licensing fees until further notice and will continue to review this support on an ongoing basis.”
Fluid situation
He said: “The Government support packages that have been announced to support our publicans through this period of closure are very welcomed, although we continue to push for more clarity and speed, particularly on the support for self-employed.”
Chesser went on to outline how the pubco is working with its licensees in a bid to help and support them.
He added: “This is a fluid situation with an uncertain timeline and while there are still many moving parts, our current focus is to help each and every publican in supporting their applications – ensuring they are able to access and collect their Government support as quickly as possible.
“We will continue to work with our publicans on an individual basis through this period of closure and we maintain a strong commitment to protecting the long term, sustainable future of our pubs.”
The Morning Advertiser has asked for clarity on this and is awaiting a response.
Specific processes
This follows Punch announcing on 18 March, it was deferring the collection of rent, insurance, fixtures and fittings rental, pub care and licensing charges for at least 14 days.
At the time, Punch added there were clearly more questions to be answered and it was awaiting clarity on the specific processes and timescales for the different areas of financial support to be unlocked.