海角视频Hospitality called on the Welsh Government to urgently provide firm dates to enable hospitality businesses to plan for a safe and orderly full reopening.
The call follows today’s announcement that some pubs, bars, cafes and restaurants in Wales will be able to reopen, but only outdoor areas from July 13.
Venues will be able to open outdoor spaces they own and have licences for as long as coronavirus cases continue to fall, but indoor services will remain closed for now, despite industry pressure.
海角视频Hospitality Executive Director for Wales David Chapman said: “While premises remain closed or partially open without the surety of a full opening date, the spectre of large numbers of redundancies hangs over the industry and the vulnerable communities it serves across Wales.”
The Welsh Independent Restaurant Collective said a date for reopening outside is welcome but its contribution to the retention of jobs and the survival of businesses is nevertheless very limited.
They said: “Our research shows that less than 50% of independent pubs, cafes and restaurants will be able to take advantage of this opportunity and of those the majority expect to achieve less than 25% of their usual turnover.”
They added: “We will continue to work with Welsh Government on the safe reopening of the sector but we once again urge the need for urgent engagement on the measures needed to ensure that as many of our businesses as possible survive to be part of a robust and speedy recovery.”
Ben Francis, FSB Wales Policy Chair, said: “That cafes, pubs and restaurants with existing outdoor seating areas can reopen from 13th July will be positive news for those businesses who can benefit.
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"That this announcement comes at the same time as flexible furlough becomes possible will give some firms opportunities to reopen in the coming weeks.
"However, this has fallen well short of the timetable that FSB has been calling for hospitality and tourism, which the First Minister must address. A number of business owners are facing very difficult decisions about the future of their businesses and those they employ.”
Welsh Government said future decisions about indoor re-opening will be made later and will depend on the success of the first phase of outdoor opening.
Aberconwy MS Janet Finch-Saunders MS urged the First Minister to explain the Welsh Government’s reasoning behind its uneven reopening of cafes and restaurants, which she described as "pillars of the North Wales economy".
She added: "It is disappointing that I must keep pressing the Welsh Government to consider the impact of their restrictions on the hospitality sector.
"Whilst I welcome today’s announcement to allow outside trade, it is most questionable that the Welsh Government’s approach to reopening now allows our children to gather and eat in schools, but prevents adults from sitting in a restaurant where the correct safety precautions can be taken."
Helen Mary Jones MS, Plaid Cymru shadow minister for the economy, said: “Plaid Cymru and Wales' bars and restaurants have consistently asked for a timescale for reopening the hospitality sector in Wales. Our calls have been ignored by Welsh Government until now.
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“While the news that we have a date now for outdoor opening is welcome, we still do not understand why a timetable couldn’t have been shared with the sector earlier.
"Giving the sector less than two weeks to prepare for re-opening shows how problematic the Welsh Government's current ad-hoc approach is to easing restrictions."