Fall in living standards to bite spend on pubs, restaurants: analyst

Office for Budget Responsibility estimates living standards to fall by 3.4%.

Living standards are expected to fall by 3.4% in the next two years and this could translate into much less spending in restaurants, pubs, and hotels, analyst Peter Backman said.

Backman said the OBR expects inflation to be rising at over 9% this year and 7.4% next, before subsiding to an average of 0.5% over the following four years. In the meantime, GDP growth is forecast to fall to -1.4% next year and then increase by 2.5% for the following three or four years.

“Within this grim picture, the outlook for operators will be slightly strengthened by the proposed Transitional Relief Scheme to limit the effects of changes in business rates. That, I suppose, is something positive to hold on to amidst the gloom,” Backman said.