BAR CHIEF: NEW MEASURES COULD BE FINAL STRAW
NICOLA Sturgeon has defended pub closures after a furious backlash over claims hospitality is being turned into a scapegoat in the pandemic. The First Minister said the two-week shutdown was a tough decision but had to be balanced against a health crisis. “I do not get up in the morning and decide to close pubs for a policy reason,” she told MSPs at the Scottish Parliament yesterday.
“We are in a global pandemic where we are trying to save lives and balance that with the interests of the economy as best we possibly can.”
Licensed premises close at 6pm today across central Scotland, with heavy restrictions also in place across the country.
Pub leaders said the decision will force people out of business despite a promised £40million support package. Sturgeon said more details on the money will be outlined later today. At First Minister’s Questions, Sturgeon offered sympathy for managers but added: “It is literally a life and jobs balance all of the time. I wouldn’t wish these decisions on anyone.
“I accept it’s my responsibility. Nobody makes any of us do these jobs but I literally wouldn’t wish these decisions on anyone.”
Kenny Blair, manager of Buzzworks Holdings, said only one of his 12 venues, Lido in Troon, will be financially viable during the restrictions. Blair, who employs about 500 people, estimates he will lose £1million in revenue over the 16 days and he has concerns for the future if the restrictions are extended.
“We have the impact on staff who are fearful about what the future is for them and it substantially weakens businesses like ours from a financial point of view,” he said.
“Many businesses in hospitality across Scotland are already substantially weakened and this may be the final straw for them.
“We are hoping that we get to
reopen 16 days after we close but if that’s not the case, we will have to make some serious decisions about our workforce.”
Blair, who is a member of the Scottish Hospitality Group, said he believes mitigating measures put in place by businesses in the sector have made them safe spaces for socialising.
“I think we’ve been made a scapegoat in this and unless we see evidence otherwise, it would be difficult to change our opinion,” he said.
“We believe that because of the measures we’ve taken and the investment, the training, we provide a safe environment to socialise in and we’ve not seen any evidence that proves that’s not the case.”
Scottish Labour leader Richard Leonard raised concerns over the pub industry’s future in Parliament yesterday.
He told Sturgeon: ”It is clear this is not just about the decision you’ve taken, it’s about how you have taken it. All week, there were hints that tighter restrictions were coming. All the while, those set to be most affected by the restrictions were kept in the dark.”
Five more deaths of confirmed coronavirus patients in the past 24 hours were confirmed yesterday, taking the total under this measure – patients who died within 28 days of first testing positive – to 2538.
A total of 1027 new cases were recorded over the same period, representing 13.5 per cent of newly-tested individuals, up from 13 per cent on Wednesday.