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COVID-19 is not in the “rear view mirror” for Britain’s hospitality sector and it still has symptoms that are “very real”, a leading pubs boss has told Sky News.
Clive Chesser, chief executive of Punch Pubs, spoke about the challenges facing the sector at a discussion on the UK’s recovery with leaders from across the economy at Sky’s Big Ideas Live event.
Mr Chesser said the “celebratory” tone of the prime minister’s speech to the Conservative Party conference last week did not match the reality facing hospitality businesses.
He was speaking during a detailed discussion on jobs at the Sky News event, where topics ranged from training and inflation to taxes and investment.
Mr Chesser spoke about how hospitality was seeing an uneven recovery across the country, with staycation hotspots such as the southwest of England bouncing back strongly over the summer but others seeing a slower upturn.
He also spoke of “frustration” about not being able to meet demand at times.
“We’ve got pubs that are struggling to find the staff that we need,” he said.
Meanwhile, he added a “huge amount of costs” are being added and absorbing those without passing them on to customers was “getting more difficult”.
However, Mr Chesser, whose business includes 1,300 pubs across the UK that employ 20,000 people, added that despite the “fragile” picture in places, “the underlying position is one of optimism”.
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But, he added: “We need to continue to get the support from government through the COVID pandemic beyond the current measures that are in place and longer term and to have a real transition plan.
“I thought that the tone of the conference last week and the prime minister’s speech felt…
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Source : skynews
