The Daily Telegraph

Calls for extension to Eat Out to Help Out

Popularity of cheap meals initiative means it should be continued in struggling areas, Chancellor told

- By Gordon Rayner POLITICAL EDITOR

The Eat Out to Help Out initiative comes to an end today, but allies of the Chancellor believe he should continue the popular scheme in city centres, which remain largely deserted. The issue is being discussed, but no decision will be made until Rishi Sunak returns from holiday this week. More than 64 million meals have been subsidised by the Government under the scheme, which offered half price restaurant meals, with a maximum £10 discount per head, during August.

RISHI SUNAK is being urged to extend his Eat Out to Help Out scheme by targeting city centres worst-hit by the shift to home working as the initiative comes to an end today.

Allies of the Chancellor believe he should continue the hugely popular scheme in areas such as the City of London, which remain largely deserted.

Senior sources said the issue is a live discussion within the Treasury, though no decision will be made until Mr Sunak returns from holiday this week.

One minister told The Daily Telegraph: “The scheme has been a big success in general, but it’s all very well going to your local restaurant down the road for a cheap meal when those restaurant­s are already doing good business because of people working from home.

“It is the destinatio­n restaurant­s in city centres that need the help, and that’s where resources should be concentrat­ed.”

Mr Sunak has been delighted with the success of the Eat Out to Help Out scheme, but may be reluctant to make his first about-turn of the coronaviru­s pandemic by extending the scheme after insisting it would only last for a month.

More than 64 million meals have been subsidised by the Government under the scheme, which offered half price restaurant meals, up to a maximum discount of £10, on Mondays to Wednesdays during August.

Last week, the number of people eating out in the early part of the week was more than double the number for the same week in 2019.

Dozens of restaurant chains have announced plans to launch their own versions of the scheme to keep up the momentum, particular­ly those that do not rely on alcohol sales to generate profits.

Itsu reported a 50 per cent increase in transactio­ns without negatively impacting on trade during the rest of the week, but some pubs and restaurant­s have said diners who shifted their weekly meal out from a weekend to a weekday are buying far less alcohol because they have to work the next day.

Mr Sunak said: “I want to say thank you to the diners who have fallen back in love with their local, to the managers who have spent weeks ensuring their restaurant­s were safe and to the chefs, waiters and waitresses across the country who have worked tirelessly, sometimes with more customers than they’ve ever had before – all helping to protect 1.8million jobs in the hospitalit­y sector.

“The scheme reminded us why we as a nation love dining out and I urge diners to maintain the momentum to help continue our economic recovery.”

According to a poll by Yougov, half of people who used the scheme this month intend to dine out the same amount or more often once it comes to an end.

Meg Ellis, commercial director of Honest Burgers, said there had been a “shift in energy” in the food sector as a result of the scheme, which had enabled the firm to bring more of its staff back to work and restore the “vitality” of the restaurant trade.

The Eat Out to Help Out scheme is closing just as it reaches its peak, having trebled in popularity between the first and third weeks it was operating.

In its first week, the scheme subsidised 10.5million meals, with another 25million in the second week and almost 30 million in the third week. The final take-up and overall cost of the scheme will be disclosed later this week.

Although the scheme was intended to pay for up to £10 of each meal, ministers accept that some people will have been able to save £30 on a threecours­e meal by paying separately for each course.

Meanwhile, Mr Sunak will this week reveal details of his £2 billion Kickstart scheme, designed to help 16to 24-year-olds get employment by paying employers to create new jobs.

The initiative, which goes live this week, will cover the cost of 25 hours’ work a week at the national minimum wage, which firms can choose to top up if they wish to. It will run until December 2021.

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