Restaurant and bar owners call for clarity on re-opening

MANCHESTER restaurant and bar owners are calling for clarity after the government published its road map for relaxing the lockdown.

Hospitality businesses will not be permitted to reopen to the public beyond offering takeaway and collection services - until July 4 at the earliest.

But the document stresses any reopening is subject to the pandemic remaining under control.

‘Food service providers, pubs and accommodation’ are mentioned as businesses that may be able to open in July, along with hairdressers, beauty salons and leisure facilities such as cinemas.

Such businesses will be required to abide by certain ‘Covid-19 Secure Guidelines’, the details of which will be released later this week.

It’s left restaurant and bar owners in the dark about how best to future proof their businesses, which have been shut since March.

Neil Macleod is director of Mission Mars, which owns many of the city’s most prominent gig venues and restaurants, including Albert’s Schloss, Rudy’s and the Albert Hall.

He said: “We don’t have any kind of clarity on what the rules will actually look like. We’re scenario-planning to see if things are viable - if it’s strict two-metre distancing, with that much space for each customer and enough room in every part of the building including corridors, it’s not going to be viable, but if it’s something else, we might be able to work with it.

“When it comes to our turn to be unleashed, we’re going to need some notice, we’re going to have to have some significantly different operating plans.”