Monday 13/3/17
Morningadvertiser.co.uk – Chancellor’s £1,000 rates discount will ‘save 25% of pubs’
By Claire Churchard, 13-Mar-2017
The £1,000 business rates discount, unveiled by the Chancellor of the Exchequer last week, could be the difference between survival and closing down for 25% of small independent pubs, according to a snap poll of 100 sites. Read More
Propelinfo.com – Shortage of British workers in UK hotels and restaurants so severe that many will go bust unless ministers allow EU workers to remain in jobs says BHA: The shortage of British workers in UK hotels and restaurants is so severe that many will go bust unless ministers allowed EU migrants to continue to work in low-skilled jobs after the UK leaves, the British Hospitality Association (BHA) has warned. The BHA also said companies such as Pret A Manger, whose human resources director told MPs last week just one in 50 of its job applicants was British, would need ten years to replace EU staff after Brexit. BHA chairman Ufi Ibrahim told The Guardian: “It is going to very, very tough indeed. It will be a very long time for businesses like Pret to replace EU staff because they are largely based in the south east. I think it will take ten years to build a future talent pipeline.” The BHA is calling on the government to bolster its newly announced technical qualifications with better promotion within schools of non-academic careers, including hospitality. Ibrahim said: “We have to go back into the schools and present hospitality as a career option to children between the ages of 11 and 14.” In the meantime, she said Britain has to have continued access to a low-skilled EU workforce otherwise businesses face bankruptcy.
Propelinfo.com – Morrisons boss attacks Tesco tie-up with Booker: Morrisons chairman Andy Higginson has attacked Tesco’s £3.9bn deal with Booker and said the tie-up would mean the supermarket would “exert even more power over thousands of retailers”. Higginson, who was Tesco finance director in its glory days, said he was convinced the Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) would scrutinise the deal and Booker had been courting rival supermarkets “for the past two years”. He told the Sunday Telegraph: “I think the CMA will want to look at this in a lot of detail to really understand how it is going to change the market and lead to Tesco controlling about 25% of the supply of food into the market.” Tesco and Booker have attempted to assuage competition concerns by arguing Booker’s convenience shop fascias – Londis, Premier, Budgens and Happy Shopper – are owned by franchisees. However, Higginson said: “The truth is they control and influence, and it will be a lot more difficult [to gain clearance] than they realise.” Asked whether Morrisons would have been interested in Booker, Higginson said: “It’s not a deal we wanted to do.”
Propelinfo.com – JD Wetherspoon puts up prices: JD Wetherspoon has put up the cost of its popular meal deals as it introduced new menu items. Prices vary nationally but the Sunday People reported Wetherspoon’s burger and drink deal has risen on average from £7.25 to £7.40 while a chicken burger has increased from £4.59 to £4.75. A pint of Kronenbourg costing £3.09 is now £3.19. At one site – in Oxted, Surrey – its breakfast deals have also gone up, with porridge rising from £2.39 to £2.45 and toast from £1.59 to £1.65. Spokesman Eddie Gershon said: “We have introduced a new menu with some new products and there maybe some changes on food and drink prices. We aim to remain extremely competitive. However we will not comment on individual prices.”
Tuesday 14/3/17
Morningadvertiser.co.uk – Almost a third of pubs in England ‘exempt from rates payments’ from April
By Claire Churchard, 14-Mar-2017
Almost 30% of pubs in England won’t pay any business rates over the next five years, starting from April 2017 when new property valuations come into force, according to figures from rates experts CVS. Read More
Wednesday 15/3/17
Morningadvertiser.co.uk – ‘We won’t have any pubs left’ warns licensee facing ‘killer’ rates hike
By Daniel Woolfson, 15-Mar-2017
A top gastropub operator has told of his despair upon learning his thriving pub’s business rates charges will increase by 300% over the next two years. Read More
Hospitalityandcateringnews.com – £1 million refurbishment of Dragonfly portfolio commences: More than 200 bedrooms across Surya Hotel’s Dragonfly portfolio are undergoing extensive refurbishment to bring them up to modern standards.The work is part of major renovations which sees 241 bedrooms earmarked for refurbishment in Colchester, King’s Lynn, Peterborough and Bury St Edmunds – each to be decorated to modern standards with beautiful contemporary designs and furnishings. Communal areas have also been singled out for investment to create a contemporary feel at each of the hotels. Surya Hotels are one of the UK’s leading niche hotel groups with a rapidly expanding portfolio of properties, situated in some of the UK’s most idyllic settings, from historic towns and coastal resorts to picturesque villages. Read More
Morningadvertiser.co.uk – NWTC sweeps board at Publican Awards
By Ed Bedington, 15-Mar-2017
The New World Trading Company (NWTC) swept the board across six categories to dominate the prestigious Publican Awards. Read More
Thursday 16/3/17
Morningadvertiser.co.uk – JD Wetherspoon to slash 7.5% off food and drink at 900+ pubs
By Daniel Woolfson, 16-Mar-2017
JD Wetherspoon (JDW) chairman Tim Martin will hack 7.5% off all food and drink prices for one day across his 900+ pub estate later this year to demonstrate the effect a VAT cut could have on the hospitality industry. Read More
Friday 17/3/17
Morningadvertiser.co.uk – ALMR slams ‘irony’ of DCLG tax cut as rates soar for nearby pubs
By Georgina Townshend, 17-Mar-2017
Industry body the ALMR has criticised the Government office that oversees business rates for accepting a tax cut for its site in central London while ramping up business rates for the pubs closest to it. Read More
Costsectorcatering.co.uk – Operators warned of tougher sentencing on food safety: Owners of restaurants, pubs and supermarkets in England and Wales have been warned that new laws and tougher sentencing means they could lose their livelihoods if they do not comply with food safety regulations, according to UK commercial law firm Maclay Murray and Spens LLP (MMS). Philip Sewell, a commercial dispute resolution partner at MMS, said: “In the wake of recently tightened sentencing guidelines for health and safety offences, where business turnover and the potential harm a breach could cause are now being taken into account, it is only a matter of time before a similar approach is adopted for food hygiene and labeling offences. “We are already seeing evidence that tougher sentences are being sought by the CPS in England and Wales.” Read More
Bighospitality.co.uk – Hospitality expert cautiously welcomes National Insurance U-turn
By Hannah Thompson, 16-Mar-2017
A hospitality specialist has commended the Chancellor’s U-turn on National Insurance contributions for self-employed people, but warned industry workers to watch out for replacement taxes or cuts. Read More
Propelinfo.com – Cambscuisine to start Smokeworks expansion with second Cambridge site: Pub and restaurant operator Cambscuisine, led by Oliver Thain and Max Freeman, is to start expansion of its Smokeworks barbecue concept by opening a second site. The company will open the new venue in mid-June in Station Road, Cambridge, on the site of the former Great Northern Kitchen & Bar, reports the Cambridge News. Cambscuisine opened the first Smokeworks in Free School Lane in the city centre in 2014 and has been on the hunt for a “bigger” second site for the concept. The company operates seven sites in and around Cambridge. Its other restaurants include The Cambridge Chop House and “eclectic modern brasserie” Millworks, which opened in October.