Chains join month-long discount scheme for diners
Trade body UKHospitality welcomed the jobs and hospitality package.
Chancellor Rishi Sunak said the 20% value added tax applied to dine-in and takeaway food, accommodation and attractions will be cut to 5% in a bid to secure jobs for the hospitality sector, complemented with a month-long discount scheme for diners to encourage spending.
The government’s new “Eat Out to Help Out” scheme, which will run in August, will give a 50% discount for sit-down meals in restaurants, pubs and cafes for up to £10 per person between Monday to Wednesday every week.
Nando’s, Prezzo and Wagamama are just some of the major brands that have signed up for the scheme.
Sunak also announced a new job retention policy which would see a £1,000 bonus paid to companies for each employee brought back from furlough as of January 2021.
Trade body UKHospitality welcomed the jobs and hospitality package.
“This significant VAT cut, heightened ability to retain staff and incentives for consumers to eat out together amount to a huge bonus. We hope that the UK public rightly sees it as (a) sign that we are ready to welcome them back safely. The future of many businesses and jobs depends on it,” chief executive Kate Nicholls said in a statement.
“The measures to support job retention and recruitment are very positive. Even after the reopening of some venues, we estimate that around 1.5 million workers in our sector are still furloughed. With revenues likely to be down for the foreseeable future, the support measures to get workers off furlough and back into work will be greatly appreciated,” she added.
