Chair of Manchester Hoteliers’ Association (MHA) Adrian Ellis has welcomed the announcement from the government surrounding the rescue packages for leisure and hospitality venues.
Adrian, who has been in the post for over 5 years, stated that ‘it was positive to see the government putting leisure and hospitality venues at the forefront of kick starting the economy.’
He said: “We believe the Chancellors announcement last week was hugely positive for our industry and we welcome the measures announced to support hospitality businesses across the country.
“Hoteliers across the region have had a successful reopening period with many reporting stronger figures over the last few weekend periods there has however been a drop in sales mid-week due to the lack of business travel, events, banqueting and low consumer confidence.
Adrian hailed the ‘Eat Out to Help Out’ scheme as ‘crucial in driving people to hotel restaurants and bars providing that vital boost needed across the sector during an incredibly challenging mid-week period.’
He said: “The measures announced are hugely welcome including the cut on VAT rates to 5%. This has been warmly received by hoteliers across the regional and it will go some way in enabling people to regrow their businesses and stimulating demand in the first few month’s post lockdown.”
The Chancellor also announced a raft of measures last week including the £1000 saving per employee for businesses that retain furloughed staff post January 2021 which Adrian noted was a ‘huge step in the right direction’ as it enabled operators to review the scales of the measures taken in the short to medium term.
‘’We hope that measures such as these will help kickstart our industry and that 2021 will be the year that the industry starts to see a more comprehensive recovery.”
Adrian who has also served as chair of Hoteliers’ Associations in major European and Asian cities added: “Although we are incredibly optimistic about the future of the leisure and hospitality industry we welcome the Chancellor putting the industry at the forefront of the recovery plans outlined.”
The MHA has a 50-strong membership made up of general managers of hotels throughout the region. Its key objectives are being a strong voice for the hotel community, and continually improving the offering for visitors spending time in the city.
They spearheaded a campaign during COVID-19 pandemic encouraging hotels across Manchester to provide care packages to the NHS. The initiative saw NHS frontline staff and vulnerable members of the community receive leftover produce from hotels throughout the region, including food and soft drinks.
