THIRD of bars, pubs and clubs could close by NYE: Hospitality bosses plead for CLARITY

A third of bars, pubs and clubs could close by New Years Eve as hospitality bosses plead for clarity from ministers on Covid-19 restrictions.

The industry is facing a ‘cataclysmic Christmas’ and bosses have called for financial support amid a rise of the Omicron variant. 

Peter Marks, chief executive at REKOM, told BBC Radio 4’s Today programme running a nightclub has been ‘really tough’ and called for ministers to cut VAT for venue entry. ‘If we have restrictions we need money to survive,’ he added.

A survey by the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA) of more than five hundred nightclubs, bars, pubs and hospitality venues has today revealed that the sector faces a ‘cataclysmic Christmas’. 

One fifth of nightlife businesses could lose their entire workforce, and one third fear closure within a month without urgent Government support following new Covid restrictions and omicron uncertainty. 

On average, night time economy venues have lost £46,000 per unit in lost sales and cancellations during the festive period.

Jonathan Neame, Shepherd Neame chief executive told BBC Radio 4’s Today Programme his chain saw a ‘significant drop’ in footfall in London. 

In other coronavirus news today:

• All sporting events in Wales will be held behind closed doors from Boxing Day due to the surge in coronavirus cases, the Welsh government has announced;
• London’s New Year’s Eve celebration event in Trafalgar Square will not take place because of the surge in cases of the Omicron Covid variant in the capital;
• Boris Johnson last night stepped back from imposing punitive lockdown curbs that would have ruined Christmas after a lengthy Cabinet meeting called for ‘incontrovertible evidence’ on the Omicron variant;
• Cambridge professor Sir David Spiegelhalter said the fact half patients in London’s hospitals were only diagnosed with Covid after admission with another condition showed Covid was rife in London;
• Boris Johnson’s former chief aide Dominic Cummings and ex-Health Secretary Matt Hancock have been revealed to be among government staff pictured ‘working’ in the Downing Street garden during lockdown. 

Restaurants and bars are closing up early and some are even closed down due to very little trade with the effects of working from home, and concerns over new covid-19 infections

Empty streets are pictured in London as Britons stay home to avoid spreading the Omicron variant

A very quiet Duchess of Cambridge pub in Windsor today as people continue to stay at home

Over half of businesses required to introduce Covid Certification for entry to their premises report witnessing over a 40 per cent drop in footfall.

And half of all businesses in the night time economy will have to cut over half of jobs in their workforce if the Government does not provide commensurate financial support.

Mr Marks added: ‘We can’t say how much the problem of shrinkage we’ve had in the last few days has been down to vaccine passports and whether it’s been down to the fear of going out. What I can tell you is we’re running at 40 per cent down at a period of time which is absolutely critical for us as a business, starting at next weekend thinking well we’re probably okay until Christmas now albeit limping along but may not even be opening New Years Eve which is worth about 8-10 per cent of our annual profit.’

He said REKOM’s staff are on standby without clarity on whether nightclubs will be open following Christmas.

‘Stock is another thing,’ he added. ‘Do you order stock ready for new years eve and suddenly find it’s going to sit in the cellar because you’ve closed. It’s impossible to plan for.’

Packed pavements: It was thought many were staying at home due to fears over the new variant but hundreds packed Regent Street for last minute Christmas shopping yesterday afternoon

All sporting events in Wales to be held behind closed doors from Boxing Day due to increase in coronavirus cases with Cardiff City fixtures and Welsh Grand National among events affected 

All sporting events in Wales will be held behind closed doors from Boxing Day due to the surge in coronavirus cases, the Welsh government has announced.

Economy Minister Vaughan Gething announced the new measures for indoor and outdoor sporting events in a bid to slow the spread of the Omicron variant.

Gething said: ‘Sporting events over the Christmas period are one of the big highlights of the year. Unfortunately, the new Omicron variant is a significant development in the pandemic and could cause a large number of infections.

All sporting events in Wales – including Cardiff City and Swansea City home games – will take place behind closed doors from Boxing Day

‘We need to do everything we can to protect people’s health and control the spread of this awful virus.

‘Throughout the pandemic we have followed scientific and public health advice to keep people safe. The advice is clear – we need to act now in response to the threat of Omicron. We are giving people as much notice of these decisions as we can.

‘Crowds will come back as soon as possible. We want everyone to be here to enjoy their favourite sports.’

Cardiff’s United Rugby Championship clash with Scarlets and Wrexham’s National League fixture against Solihull – both scheduled for December 26 – will be the first affected by the ruling.

Wales’ economy minister Vaughan Gething announced the new measures amid a rise in Covid

And the Welsh Grand National at Chepstow will also have to be run behind closed doors despite advance ticket sales in excess of 6,000.

Cardiff City’s Championship clash against Coventry has already been postponed due to a coronavirus outbreak in the Bluebirds’ camp, as has the United Rugby Championship game between the Ospreys and the Dragons.

The first EFL fixture due to be affected is Swansea’s Championship clash with Luton, which is currently scheduled for December 29.

Cardiff City said in a statement: ‘Cardiff City Football Club acknowledges the instruction from the Welsh government for sporting events in Wales to be played behind closed doors for a limited period of time in an effort to curb the spread of the Omicron variant.

‘Following the postponement of our Boxing Day fixture with Coventry City on Monday, this is set to most immediately impact our FA Cup third round tie with Preston North End on January 9th.’

Gething confirmed that a £3million Spectator Sports Fund will be available to support those clubs affected by the loss of spectator revenue.

Chepstow Racecourse chief executive Phil Bell anticipated the move last week, when he told BBC Wales: ‘We’ve seen this coming in recent days.

‘It would be damaging – we’ve currently sold 6,000 tickets – an average price £35 – so people can do the maths. Around 800 people have booked hospitality packages at around £80 to £120 – there are significant amounts of revenue at stake here.’ 

‘We need help and the best thing you could do for nightclubs is include door admission in the reduced VAT position that you’ve given to pubs and restaurants that sell food and that’s encouraged survival there. That’s a very easy way you can target nightclubs and live music venues and help them. It needs backdating.’ 

Mr Neame, of Shepherd Neame, said outlets have seen profits fall 60-70 per cent.

He said: ‘There were a lot of cancellations from the point the suggestion was made that people should restrict their socialising. 

‘At the moment we’re still hanging on if you like by a knifeedge to the hope that community pubs can keep their Christmas. Christmas for them tends to start at the end of this week and go between Christmas and New Year. It’s a very precarious situation.’

He said the company was still taking deliveries but was operating ‘hour by hour’ as he called for more Government support. 

‘I’d prefer to stay open under any costs but there is a case for compensations now. Closure has terrific waste associated with it,’ he added.

‘When you close there’s no certainty when you might reopen again. The comments from Professor Whitty are already the circumstances where the trade needs further support because they’ve changed consumer behaviour, they’ve changed consumer confidence. 

‘What we’re asking for is an extension to the VAT relief that exists at the moment to the end of 2022 and cancellation of rates. There’s also £2bn in grants that were issues to local authorities that have not yet been distributed for the previous lockdowns and they should be released immediately.’

He said the situation was ‘extremely demoralising’ and praised business for staying afloat.

‘Businesses have done remarkable well to keep going. We still do not think the evidence is there for hospitality to be treated with restrictions.’ 

Phil Urban, Chief Executive of Mitchells and Butlers, told the BBC ‘many in our industry are really going to be up against it’.

He added: ‘From the moment Chris Whitty said what he said it’s the city centres that are particularly impacted. 

‘We are in broad stakes and it’s city centres we’ve seen a drop off in trade. Loss of corporate parties you would expect at this time of year. It is a critical trading time for the sector. Many in our industry are really going to be up against it.

‘Typically the industry would be staffing up for Christmas. There have been issues with that. The sector lost a lot of people during the lockdowns. We’re fortunate we’ve been able to get to the numbers of teams we want, but at local level it can be very problematic.’ 

Michael Kill, Chief Executive of the NTIA, said: ‘It really is a chilling prospect to see so many venues in our sector left to bleed, with a lockdown in everything but name and absolutely no recognition of this from the Government. 

‘These venues have faced over twenty months of financial hardship and the Christmas trade period was integral to keeping those surviving businesses afloat in the upcoming year.

‘If further restrictions are to be implemented, the Chancellor must step in and recognise the huge damage that waves of cancellations, driven by mixed Government messaging, resource intensive Covid protocols and costly restrictions actually have. 

‘The Government have had twenty months to learn how our sector operates; it is beggars belief we stand here again, as if back in March 2020, imploring the Government to listen to us, to understand how businesses work and to realise that inaction is a death sentence for our industry. It really is a Cataclysmic Christmas.’

Sacha Lord, Night Time Economy Advisor for Greater Manchester, said: ‘Whilst shocking and upsetting, these latest stats don’t come as much surprise. The industry have been unanimously calling on the Chancellor for both support and leadership. To date, our calls have fallen on deaf ears and for some, it is already too late. If the UK’s fifth biggest industry has any hope of survival, he must come forward, urgently.’    

The Christmas plans of thousands were also thrown into potential chaos after one in four rail operators cancelled services yesterday because of staff illness.

On what would typically have been one of the busiest tourism weeks of the year, the Natural History Museum closed yesterday owing to staff absences because of the ten-day isolation requirement.

It was joined by a string of other London museums and art galleries as well as Edinburgh Castle.

Meanwhile, West End shows including The Lion King and The Book of Mormon were also cancelled for a week because of Covid outbreaks among cast and crew, and performances of The Nutcracker at the Royal Opera House have been called off until January.

Theatre impresario Sir Cameron Mackintosh told the BBC: ‘Whether we’re shut by the Government or shut by stealth because of all the mixed messages… the Government does need to step in and help.’ 

His call came as the capital’s New Year’s Eve celebration planned for Trafalgar Square was cancelled ‘in the interests of public safety’.

Pubs, restaurants and bars recorded a 40 per cent slump in sales at the weekend while the owner of the Greene King chain said some sites were down 80 per cent on pre-pandemic levels.

Emma McClarkin, of the British Beer and Pub Association, said Government caution over the Omicron variant – with the introduction of Plan B measures such as working from home – had caused public confidence to ‘nosedive’.

‘Our recovery has been set back by at least six months,’ she added. ‘We are right back to square one – it is like snakes and ladders.’

Simon Emeny, of pub chain Fuller, Smith and Turner, announced at the weekend he had decided to close 20 of its busiest London venues because of a lack of footfall.

He said yesterday: ‘The Plan B advice is damaging city centres. The Christmas party season has been severely curtailed.

‘Once people have had a booster there is no reason they shouldn’t get on with their lives. If Plan B is kept any longer than necessary it will halt our recovery.’ 

It is feared one in ten pubs – around 5,000 – have had to close permanently since the start of the pandemic, with a slump in Christmas takings potentially signalling a death knell for many more.

Yesterday Michelin-starred restaurant Portland was among dozens in the capital to announce it was closing until January with customer numbers slumping.

Industry body UK Hospitality said up to 10,000 sites could close permanently without urgent Government support. Chief executive Kate Nicholls called for an extension to business rates relief.

Andrew Taylor, who owns gastropub Mr Fox in Croydon, south London, which has faced an 80 per cent drop in bookings, said: ‘Hospitality is locked down in all but name. It is going to cause thousands of businesses to close and tens of thousands of job losses.’

Meanwhile, rail operators warned passengers to prepare for further delays and cancellations caused by staffing shortages.

Yesterday around 13 per cent of trains were cancelled or behind schedule, with eight of the 28 major rail operators experiencing coronavirus-related staff problems. 

The traditional Christmas tree in Trafalgar Square was to be a centre point of New Year’s Eve celebrations that would be broadcast on the BBC but which have now been cancelled

Spectators gather to watch the Christmas Tree lights being switched on in Trafalgar Square last month – but crowds will be kept away this New Year

It came as next week’s episodes of ITV’s breakfast show Good Morning Britain were axed to ‘protect’ staff amid fears over Omicron. It will return on January 4. 

London’s New Year’s Eve celebration event in Trafalgar Square will not take place because of the surge in cases of the Omicron Covid variant in the capital.

London mayor Sadiq Khan has said the event, which was set to be open to around 6,500 key workers and members of the public, had to be cancelled because ‘we must take the right steps to reduce the spread of the virus’.

He declared a major incident in London on Saturday amid 65,525 new confirmed cases in the past seven days and the impact of the surge on frontline services.

A 29 per cent increase in London hospital admissions had also been recorded in the last week.

Revellers, who may have attended the central London send-off to 2021, are now being asked to watch a live TV broadcast on BBC One and BBC iPlayer which organisers say will celebrate the city and highlight the most defining moments of the past year. 

Mr Khan said: ‘With infections of Covid-19 at record levels across our city and the UK, I’m determined to work closely with partners in our city to do everything we possibly can to slow the spread of the new variant and ensure our NHS services are not overwhelmed this winter.

‘This means that we will no longer be hosting a celebration event for 6,500 people on Trafalgar Square this New Year’s Eve. 

This will be very disappointing for many Londoners, but we must take the right steps to reduce the spread of the virus. 

I’m proud that we will still have an incredible broadcast spectacular to watch on our screens, which will showcase our great city to the rest of the world.

‘Our world-renowned retail, hospitality, tourism, nightlife and cultural businesses are already suffering from the impact of the latest wave of Covid cases during what is usually their busiest time of the year.’

He called on the Government to step forward with a package of support for London’s retail, hospitality, tourism, night-time and cultural businesses that are being badly hit by the impact of the variant.