Britain’s hospitality industry has issued a stark warning to the government, saying that any delay to the scheduled relaxation of restrictions this month would have a “devastating effect”.UK
Prime Minister Boris Johnson now faces the dilemma of whether to prioritise the economy and ease the rules or to stay cautious and delay the final step out of lockdown.
Tim Martin told investors today that a Daily Telegraph story “misrepresented Wetherspoon’s position”. He said it “clearly isn’t true” that the pub group is facing staff shortages following the reopening of hospitality venues across the UK. Yesterday, the Telegraph published a story titled “Wetherspoons boss calls for more EU migration as bars and restaurants tackle staff shortage”, with other hospitality operators also highlighting staffing concerns as the recent reopening resulted in a surge in customer demand. Trade group UK Hospitality has said that staffing has been a challenge, with Brexit adding to this issue as many EU workers returned to the continent.