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Leaders from the hospitality sector say the four-week delay in lockdown easing could be devastating for venues across England.

The Prime Minister tonight confirmed that the final easing of coronavirus lockdown restrictions, which had been scheduled for next week, is now set to happen on July 19. The delay follows concern over the spread of the Delta variant.

That means nightclubs remain closed and other venues will continue to have strict capacity restrictions.

One hospitality leader tonight said the Prime Minister might have "switched the lights off" on the entire nightclub sector -while another said it could cost billions of pounds in lost sales. Unions have also called for more support for the sector and its workers.

Michael Kill, chief executive of the Night Time Industries Association, said: "This is a hugely devastating blow for the very industries that have been hardest hit by this pandemic; in a very real sense, the Prime Minister has ‘switched the lights off’ for an entire sector.

"Many businesses have not survived this pandemic and others are on a financial cliff-edge, unable to operate viably. Hundreds of thousands of jobs have already been lost, a huge pool of creative talent has been swept away, and we have been left to suffer extreme financial hardship.”

“This delay will drive confidence in the sector to a new low, culminating in more of our workforce being forced to leave the industry, and customers, who have been starved of social engagement, attending illegal unregulated events in place of businesses that are well-operated, licensed and regulated.

“These businesses are overburdened with debt and so any decision to delay the full reopening of our sector must be paired with a robust financial support package, including additional restriction grants, exclusion from furlough contributions, extension of loan repayment holiday for CBILS/BBS as well as business rates and VAT relief for the next 12 months, not forgetting the £2.6 billion in commercial rent debt left unresolved.

“The Government must understand the human impact of this decision, not only considering the public health challenges of the virus but also the people within our sector who are suffering terribly and the real health risks that this represents. This is particularly important given the overwhelming confidence in the vaccination rollout, and the ability for our sector to deliver Covid safe and regulated environments.”

“Distressed industries cannot continue to be held in limbo, with thousands of businesses left to fall. This delay, which again offers no clarity on when businesses can open, is leaving many in the industry angry and frustrated, alongside other industries who have been locked down or restricted from opening through no fault of their own, and at their own cost.”

Kate Nicholls, chief executive of trade group ������ƵHospitality, called for more support from the Chancellor.

She said: “This four-week delay to lifting restrictions will cost the sector around £3 billion in sales, put at risk 300,000 jobs and have a knock-on impact on bookings throughout the summer and into the autumn.

“Simply put, if the supports provided by the Chancellor are not sustained and adjusted, businesses will fail and getting this far will count for nought.”

Emma McClarkin, chief executive of the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA), said the delay was “hard for our sector to stomach”.

She said: “The delay will cost our pubs £400 million for this period alone, but inevitably much more as confidence deteriorates and as a key part of the summer season is lost that is so critical to our sector's viability.

“Pubs and licensees are struggling to recover with the current restrictions they face and debts are accumulating.

“Every week the current restrictions stay and uncertainty continues, the likelihood of pubs being lost forever increases.

“A full package of Government support is now critical for our sector until it is guaranteed to open fully without any restrictions.”

Nick Mackenzie, chief executive of pub group Greene King, said: “We now face further uncertainty and must wait even longer before we can start profitably trading, something that we have been unable to do since the start of the pandemic.

“We also risk losing out on the substantial amount of trade that comes with the Euros, a disappointment for us and for our customers that were looking forward getting that matchday atmosphere back.

“The business rates holiday ends on the June 30, dramatically increasing our outgoing costs by £250,000 a day at a time when we will be losing millions every day in trade due to capacity constraints.”

Meanwhile unions called for an extension to the furlough scheme and urgent support for the hospitality and arts sectors.

TUC general secretary Frances O’Grady said: “The Government must step up and provide urgent targeted support for these industries. We cannot afford for more companies to go to the wall, taking good jobs with them.

“The Chancellor also needs to announce now that he will extend furlough for as long as is needed, rather than cutting it off abruptly in three months’ time.

“Working people need this certainty now – not a rollercoaster approach to protecting livelihoods.”