Tough times ahead in South Yorkshire

WHEN I am in Sheffield, which in normal circumstances pre- Covid would be at least several times a week, I occasionally pop into a splendid little back street boozer that has good beer, a friendly atmosphere and decent food should you want it.

As it is close to both of the city’s universities it is often crowded with students and staff, as well as locals, office workers and employees of the city council. At popular times, it is so packed you can barely get a foot in the front door.

But how times have changed – and sadly not for the better. Recently a friend of mine tweeted a picture of this pub on a normally busy Friday evening, and even though I am well aware that the hospitality industry has been badly hit by the pandemic, it came as something of a shock.

The rocking, lively, bustling pub of recent memory was almost entirely empty. The tables and benches that are normally rammed were deserted.

The pub staff, usually frantically pulling pints, serving food and collecting empty glasses, were standing around forlornly with absolutely nothing to do.

It was heart- breaking to see this terrific little pub, normally the hub of the local community, reduced to an empty shell of its former self. And looking at that photograph I concluded that we simply cannot go on like this for much longer.

The landlord of that pub is paying his staff to stand around staring into space; he’s paying for gas and electricity and business rates; he’s paying for beer to go stale in the pipes and if he ever makes a profit – hugely unlikely given the current circumstances – he’ll pay corporation tax on that too. And he has probably borrowed money to launch the business so there will also be capital and interest to pay.

And he simply can’t continue doing that for much longer when his revenue has been reduced to virtually zero.

I thought of that little pub, and the hundreds of others like it when the news came in this week that the whole of South Yorkshire – Sheffield, Barnsley, Rotherham and Doncaster – was entering into Tier 3 restrictions along with Manchester, Liverpool and Lancashire. In all some 7.3 million people in the North will be living under the “very high” level of alert.

Although pubs that serve “substantial meals” may stay open, there’s no doubt the restrictions will further hit trade.

And pubs not serving food will be forced to close alongside betting shops, casinos, soft play areas and gym classes, although the gyms can stay open for individual exercise.

Sheffield City Region mayor Dan Jarvis said the move was the “responsible route” after hospital admissions doubled in ten days. He added that he had “moved heaven and earth” to secure the best deal from the Government for the region. That deal involves a financial package of £ 41m, including £ 30m for local businesses and £ 11m to support public health measures such as contact tracing.

Jarvis’s co- operation with the Government is in sharp contrast to the approach of Greater Manchester metro mayor Andy Burnham, who resisted every step of the way until the Government simply imposed Tier 3 restrictions on his city this week.

Jarvis played the game much more shrewdly than his counterpart over the Pennines. Burnham fancied himself as the “King of the North” leading a rebellion against Prime Minister Boris Johnson, and as a result he badly overplayed his hand. Now the Government will funnel the Covid support cash directly to the individual Manchester local authorities, bypassing Burnham’s office entirely. At least Jarvis will have a say in how the money is spent in South Yorkshire.

But let’s face it – £ 30m for local business is chicken feed compared to the losses the region faces, and we are likely to see rocketing unemployment.

And this can’t go on forever. In September alone the government borrowed over £ 36bn to support the economy, a figure the Office of National Statistics said was “unprecedented in peacetime”. Meanwhile government revenue from income tax, VAT and corporation tax is plummeting.

I’m prepared to see if a short period of strict restrictions will make any difference. But if it doesn’t I’m afraid it might be time to protect the elderly and vulnerable as much as possible, open up society and get on with our lives, and learn to live with this horrible disease as best we can.