Quarter of NI restaurants may never re-open following lockdown

By Rebecca Black, PA

A quarter of restaurants, along with some pubs and hotels, may never be able to re-open after the coronavirus lockdown, a hospitality chief has warned.

Colin Neill of Hospitality Ulster said the sector is in a dire strait with money promised from Government not arriving quickly enough.

Venues were ordered to close as Prime Minister Boris Johnson ordered a nationwide lockdown to attempt to slow the spread of coronavirus.

Chancellor Rishi Sunak announced a scheme to allow businesses that cannot operate to furlough staff, while locally Economy Minister Diane Dodds is launching a grants programme for hospitality businesses.

However, Mr Neill said it was simply taking too long for the money to come through.

He said that 10-15% of pubs, 15% of hotels and 25% of restaurants are at risk of never opening again.

"The immediate part is the lack of any money because it is 24 days today since Boris Johnson closed us," he told the PA news agency.

"The average restaurant or small pub will have probably about two to three weeks cash flow in reserve, that ran out and we have staff not getting money as businesses have no money to give them.

"Even if you lock up your building, there are fixed costs, the alarms, security, insurance. All of that goes on, people are at their wits' ends."

Mr Neill said he has received assurances from Mrs Dodds that grants will be paid as soon as they are verified, which he described as helpful.

"But the two schemes don't open until the 20th, that's another week, people just can't eat," he said.

Mr Neill also warned that the sector will need support after the lockdown is lifted, pointing out the costs of restocking and adapting to any potential new social distancing measures.

Belfast has experienced a surge in the hospitality sector in recent years with an increased number of tourists supporting more hotels, restaurants and pubs.

"We were going to be one of the biggest drivers in the economy and we have had the rug pulled from below us," he said.

"We don't talk about reopening, we talk about rebuilding. It's so hard to know where this is going to end up, if there is going to be a second lockdown or gradual reductions.

"How does this industry survive, without Government life support, it won't."