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The heads of Jersey’s largest hospitality businesses have made an urgent plea to Government to “protect the people employed in our industry” and give the sector a “fighting chance to rebuild” with more financial support.
Luxury Jersey Hotels, Liberation Group, Randalls, JP Restaurants and Dolan Hotels are asking for full payroll support until next spring.
The request comes after a ‘hospitality circuit breaker’ came into force last week in a bid to bring down the level of covid transmission in the local community.
Ministers warned it could last until early January, though they have pledged to review it in advance of that date.
Pictured: Hospitality and fitness businesses were forced to close as part of a 'lockdown lite' announced last week to curb the spread of covid.
In an open letter addressed to Ministers, and published on Express today, hospitality bosses have asked for “the same support that all industries received during the first shutdown - and no less.”
“That support was a guaranteed 80% wage co-funding for the period of shut down and for four months afterwards. We therefore ask for the same support up to and including April 2021. This is only what was offered to all other industries in the first lockdown, the 80% support ending in September,” the letter reads.
“We would ask why our industry has only been offered up to 80%, not guaranteed, for the one month of December only and then dropping to the same support as industries not locked down for the period January – April. This is the time of year when our industry will have the least cash flow to support wages and costs having lost December.”
Pictured: Hospitality businesses want the Government to commit to full payroll support until next spring.
They went on to explain that other jurisdictions had given more than just job retention support to the sector, before concluding: “As an industry we have been forced to close for the good of the island. We now ask that the island steps up to support our people and our industry so we can be here in the future to welcome you and our island’s tourists, who spend so much in Jersey every year.
“Without this support jobs will be lost, businesses will be lost and irreparable damage will be done to our industry.”
Pictured top - from left: Some of the signatories - Patrick Burke (Atlantic Hotel), Simon Miller (Grand Jersey and L'Horizon), Lawrence Huggler (Club Hotel and Spa), Dominic Jones (JP Restaurants), Tim Hubert (Liberation Group), Gavin Reid (Randalls).
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