The decision to stay at the red traffic light level has come as a bitter disappointment for the hospitality industry which continues to struggle under the current restrictions.
“Patronage continues to be down on previous years and while this is starting to pick up, the decision to stay in red will not do much to help consumer confidence,” says Marisa Bidois, CEO of the Restaurant Association.
The March member feedback survey from the Restaurant Association indicated that businesses continue to struggle with 90 per cent of respondents saying their revenue is down on 2021 with the average revenue decrease sitting at 34 per cent.
“We are not public health experts, however, the seated and separated rule is incredibly challenging for venues.
“Hospitality venues are places where people want to socialise with others, particularly in bars and clubs so the enforcement of this rule will continue to be a sizeable issue for the industry.
“As well as more financial support, we would also like to see the Government outline a tangible vision for the recovery of our sector which clearly sets out the indicators required for a move to orange.
“We believe this should include a change of rhetoric from one of fear to one of hope and incentives, such as a subsidized dining scheme, to get people back out and stimulating the economy.”
- In a survey of Restaurant Association members conducted on March 20 , 77 per cent of respondents supported the removal of the requirement for hospitality workers to be fully vaccinated.
- The same survey of members indicated that 86 per cent would support changes to the requirement for customers to present a My Vaccine Pass.
