The hospitality sector is reminded that At 11am on Monday 14th November, members of the hospitality industry will converge on Parliament Square, to urge the government to revise its existing policies relating to hospitality venues.
At the third HospoDemo protest in two years, protestors from all corners of the sector including restaurants, bars, pubs, clubs, hotels and cafés, will come together to stand up for their industry. Dressed in their work uniform, they will come equipped with pots, pans, ladles, cocktail shakers, wooden spoons, last orders bells and other hospitality-related tools with which to make themselves heard. At 11am, all protestors will turn to face the Houses of Parliament and make as much noise as possible to ensure the sound resonates within the building, before marching on to HM Treasury to do the same.
HospoDemo is expecting a large turnout due to the perilous position so many hospitality businesses now find themselves in. Operators are still reeling from the loss of business during three Covid lockdowns and the enormous rent debt accrued during that time. Since then, the sector has had to contend with ongoing labour shortages, followed by the onslaught of the cost-of-living crisis, and spiralling costs of supplies – from fresh produce to cooking oil, staff costs to crockery and glassware, and of course, surging energy prices. With operators lurching from one crisis to another, profitable trading is becoming impossible for many.
Prominent attendees from previous HospoDemo protests included chefs Yotam Ottolenghi, Jason Atherton, Tom Aikens, Fergus Henderson and Margot Henderson, along with well-known figures in the drinks industry including Monica Berg, Alex Kratena, Alessandro Palazzi, and Jan Konetzki. Well-known figures from across the industry are expected at the protest on November 14th. Hospitality professionals from around the UK are encouraged to attend, or if they cannot, to upload videos to social media of themselves making a noise with the tools of their trade at work.
The HospoDemo protest is supported by chef Tom Kerridge who said:
“The situation that hospitality businesses are facing now is nothing short of a nightmare. I fully support HospoDemo in their efforts to make the government accountable by urging them to make policy changes such as a 10% VAT reduction, a business rates holiday and an overseas worker visa system. The question is, how many more hospitality businesses need to fail before the government takes action and gives our sector proper support?”
Fine out more at www.hospodemo.org
