Responding to the launch of First Minister Mark Drakeford’s Together for a Safer Future plan, UKHospitality’s Executive Director for Wales, Dave Chapman, commented:
“The hospitality sector was hit first, hardest and longest by the pandemic and so we welcome this shift to a more long-term focus and more sustainable way of living and working. Footfall remains low, however, particularly in high-street and city centre locations and so we would urge the Welsh Government to remove its guidance to continue to work from home, in order to revive our once vibrant high streets.
“Business is by no means back to pre-pandemic levels yet and, as we approach the second anniversary of the first lockdown, the Welsh hospitality sector still faces huge challenges. Businesses remain fragile and are carrying large amounts of debt. With costs rising across the board and a VAT rise due this April – just as the wider cost of living crisis is set to bite – businesses in the sector still need support. At the very least, we need the UK Government to commit to keeping VAT at 12.5% beyond April.”
