The Government has been pressed to extend the reduced VAT rate beyond the spring to protect some 310,000 jobs in the hospitality and tourism sector. A survey of more than a thousand businesses found 90% felt the VAT cut on food, soft drinks and accommodation in July 2020 was “important, very important or crucial” to their business. More than 75% said they might not have been able to continue trading without it. The research was carried out by the Cut Tourism VAT (CTV) Campaign, UKHospitality, the Tourism Alliance and the Association of Leading Visitor Attractions. Operators said if the VAT rate reverted back to 20% in April it would mean further job losses and the CTV estimated this could amount to 310,000 redundancies.