Reacting to the Government announcement today on the Energy Bill Relief Scheme, Sacha Lord, Night Time Economy Adviser for Greater Manchester said,
“I’m pleased that the economic importance of pubs and the hospitality sector is finally being recognised and that support is being pledged beyond this initial six month period. Businesses need to be able to plan ahead and forecast expenditure as a basic feeder of growth and investment and these plans may go some way to staving off the redundancies we have been expecting across the sector. ”
“However, only time will tell if the Government has gone far enough. Even with this help, businesses will still be paying more than they’re used to, and off the back of the pandemic, the real concern is whether they can afford to continue trading even with the support being offered.
“The hospitality sector is the fourth biggest employer in the UK, and its importance needs to be reflected in the support it is given. We are still pushing the Chancellor to offer wider support in his fiscal statement on Friday, including a reduction in VAT and business rates relief, both measures that will undoubtedly offer a lifeline to the sector.”
