Scottish Hospitality Group Call For Action On Job Losses

The hospitality industry has lost a further 5,000 jobs in the last month, bringing the total to 89,000 jobs lost since the last UK Budget. These job losses represent 53% of all UK jobs lost since the Chancellor’s Budget, highlighting the devastating impact of the increase in employers’ National Insurance contributions (eNICs) imposed by Rt Hon Rachel Reeves, with many of the businesses affected being family businesses too.

Stephen Montgomery, Director of the Scottish Hospitality Group said: “Hospitality has reached the cliff edge, which is exactly as we have warned it would over the last five years. The question now is, when will Governments on both sides of the border actually start listening?"

“Hospitality should never be seen as a luxury. It should be an affordable pleasure for everyone, and part of the very fabric of our daily lives, but to make that a reality, Governments must step up, because only they have the power to create the conditions that allow our sector to thrive and survive.”

“Talking shops and closed door committees are not the answer. We don’t need more warm words or tick box exercises. What we really need is real action, because in the end, actions will always speak louder than words.”

An Industry on the Brink

Hospitality is one of the UK’s largest employers, supporting millions of jobs and powering local supply chains. It plays a vital role in keeping town centres and high streets alive. But with soaring costs and punitive tax measures, businesses are being pushed closer to the wall.

Operators across Scotland and the wider UK are “fighting tooth and nail” and some are trying to fulfil their entrepreneurial ambitions and grow, others simply to keep their doors open.

The reality is stark:

• Jobs are on the line

• Communities are at risk

• Businesses are being lost every day

• Supply Chain will be damaged

The Call for Action

The Scottish Hospitality Group say that hospitality does not need warm words, closed door committees, or PR driven taskforces. It needs urgent, and tangible action:

• Cut VAT for hospitality

• Reverse the rise in employers’ National Insurance

• A fit for purpose NDR Policy for Licensed Hospitality in Scotland