Welsh hospitality calls for inside reopening date as it faces 30,000 job losses

At least 30,000 jobs are expected to be lost in the Welsh hospitality sector as a result of the coronavirus crisis, and almost half of these have already happened, a survey by the Welsh Independent Restaurant Collective has found.

Within the 102 businesses that responded, 434 jobs had already been lost, with a further 425 planned.

Multiplying the sample (886 job losses) by the scale of the sector in Wales, the WIRC has said total job losses will be over 30,000.

Wales is the only UK nation yet to be given a date for inside opening – its inside reopening date will depend on the ability of venues to operate safely outside from 13 July – but according to the survey, only 32% of businesses will be able to open on an outside-only basis.

In light of the findings, the WIRC has called on the Welsh Government to set a clear path for the reopening of inside spaces, arguing that there will be very few hospitality businesses able to cover opening costs under the current ‘outside only’ rule.

“The sector urgently requires a date that allows us to trade indoors this summer, like the rest of the UK, to give us a chance to retain some employment into winter and towards next summer,” said Simon Wright, founding member of WIRC. “There is a rapidly disappearing window of summer opportunity as we head towards August.

“As a collective, we understand Welsh government doesn’t have the power to control the key levers of the economy, and in that respect we ask it to redouble its efforts with the UK government on issues such as furlough, VAT and sharing the rent burden.

“At the same time, we’re pressing Welsh government to understand the catastrophic collapse that’s already happening and to direct more of the resources it has to its survival.”