Sector needs stability from Downing Street

08-Jul-2022 - Last updated on 08-Jul-2022 at 10:19 GMT

Stability and clarity: sector needs consistency to accelerate economic growth (Credit: Andrew Parsons Via No 10 Downing Street Flickr)

Whoever is at 10 Downing Street, the hospitality sector needs consistent and stable, strategic plans to accelerate economic growth, according to industry leaders and licensees across the sector.

This comes as outgoing Prime Minister Boris Johnson announced his resignation yesterday (Thursday 7 July), after that of Rishi Sunak as Chancellor of the Exchequer and Sajid Javid as health secretary as well more than 50 other MPs across the Conservative party.

Following Johnson’s resignation, UKHospitality (UKH) CEO Kate Nicholls stated businesses needed consistency to tackle the cost of doing business crisis.

In a tweet posted on Friday (8 July) Nicholls said: “We need clear, consistent, strategic plans to restore confidence, underpin investment and accelerate economic growth.

Remove barriers

“Tackling the cost of doing business - key part of tackling cost of living - to and remove barriers to delivering it needs prioritising.”

Furthermore, Paul Scully MP, previously Minister for Small Businesses, was appointed as Minister of State at the Department for Levelling Up, Housing and Communities, though he will remain Minister for London.

We need clear, consistent, strategic plans to restore confidence, underpin investment and accelerate economic growth. Tackling the cost of doing business - key part of tackling cost of living - to and remove barriers to delivering it needs prioritising
https://t.co/nthdQFqfIG
— Kate Nicholls OBE (@UKHospKate) July 8, 2022

However, licensees expressed a desperation for stability amid soaring operating costs, with particular focus on a reduction in VAT for the sector, no matter who is to take up position at 10 Downing Street.

Bath Pub Company managing director Joe Cussens said: “Whoever is in numbers 10 and 11, we desperately need stability and a plan to support businesses.

Meaningful solutions

“VAT cut would be top of my wish list, without it there’s going to be a tsunami of business failures.

“They also need to do something about the energy market, it’s ceased to function as a competitive market. Operators are being forced to agree to contracts with a gun to their head.

“Prices are up 100% to 150% and the minimum term is two years when most commentators believe prices will be lower next year.

“[They] need to fix the problem at the top before we can have any hope of meaningful solutions to the economy’s woes.”