As the House of Commons debates whether to pass the new restrictions that will put England into a stronger tiered system for the Winter months and over Christmas we hear from leaders of industry who think the current guidance is confusing enough.
Boris Johnson
‘’As we go forward ... the government will look at how we can reflect as closely as possible the reality of what is happening on the ground for local people, looking at the incidence of the disease, looking at the human geography and spread of the pandemic, and indeed the progress that areas are making in getting the virus down.
We will try to be as sensitive as possible to local effort and to local achievement in bringing the pandemic under control.’’ (Prime minister Boris Johnson starts the debate in the House of Commons on the latest round of restrictions to combat covid-19)
Ildiko Moran
‘The continuously changing situation and regulation regarding the support for businesses has extremely increased workload but not profitability. Clients request support and advise from furlough claim over BBL and CBILS to SEISS and local council’s funds. It is very difficult to learn new legislations and keep customers up to date without increasing working hours. Personally, I think businesses need more advice and support than ever before from their bookkeepers and accountants.’ (Ildiko Moran of IM Bookkeeping on the ever changing legislation)
Sir Graham Brady
''If government is to take away fundamental liberties of the people whom we represent they must demonstrate beyond question that they are acting in a way that is both proportionate and absolutely necessary," he says.
“Today... I believe the government has failed to make that compelling case.’’ (Sir Brady on the restrictions that the government is looking to put on England through the updated tier system)
Donna Copley
‘I don’t think anyone can imagine the challenge of trying to keep on top of the everchanging regulations for so many different aspects of the business, under 3 different tiers, alongside staff and customers constantly asking what it means to them. We are being bombarded with questions before we have “clarity” on the regulations, and then we add into the mix the “Christmas Bubbles”.’ (Donna Copley of Coppergreen Leisure Resorts speaks about the issues facing hospitality providers across the new tier system with multiple sites)
Kate Nicholls
‘’A one-off payment of £1,000 for pubs forced to close does not even count as a token gesture. Equivalent to just 1.1% of last year’s takings, it falls far short of the bare minimum required to keep these businesses alive.
“The Government’s entire approach to this lacked any sliver of logic, as evidenced by the farcical debate around Scotch eggs over the past 24 hours. There needs to be a much clearer and supportive approach from the Government and this means providing far more support immediately.’’ (Kate Nichols of UKHospitality says government support for 'wet-led' pubs is not enough)
