VAT
We report on VAT policy and its implications for the UK foodservice and hospitality sector, including rate changes, government decisions, lobbying campaigns, and compliance challenges. From reduced VAT measures during the pandemic to the sector’s push for permanent reform, this brings together essential updates that affect margins, pricing, and profitability. Whether you’re a small independent or a multi-site operator, understanding VAT is critical to managing costs and planning for sustainable growth. Our coverage is written to support chefs, operators, F&B leaders, and finance teams navigating a complex and evolving tax landscape.
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Jan- 2021 -12 JanuaryTrade Associations
UKH Scotland warns financial support must go further
UKHospitality Scotland has warned that the new government financial support will not be enough to prevent some hospitality businesses from collapsing and losing jobs. The Scottish government has announced that, in addition to the grants businesses receive through the Strategic Business Framework Fund, eligible businesses will also get a one-off…
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12 JanuaryPubs and Bars
Support for pubs not enough, warns BII
Less than one in four pubs in the UK have received the full payment of grants they were entitled to in the autumn and winter months of 2020, according to a survey carried out by the British Institute of Innkeeping (BII). The trade body’s research into how pub owners access…
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11 JanuaryCoronavirus
Pandemic costs D&D London £2.5m a month, owner warns
Des Gunewardena, the owner of restaurant group D&D London, has written to the government calling for greater support ahead of today’s (11 January) parliamentary debate on the hospitality industry. In a letter addressed to chancellor Rishi Sunak, Gunewardena revealed that Covid-19 is costing D&D London £2.5m per month of closure.…
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8 JanuaryPubs and Bars
Star Pubs & Bars invests £4m in lockdown rent concessions
Star Pubs and Bars will continue to offer all its leased and tenanted pubs a 90% rent reduction during the weeks in which hospitality businesses are required to close in England, Scotland and Wales. Its pubs will receive the concession regardless of whether or not they choose to operate a…
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5 JanuaryCoronavirus
Chancellor unveils £4.6bn in new lockdown grants
Businesses in the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors are to receive a one-off grant worth up to £9,000, the chancellor has announced. The news comes after the prime minister’s announcement that businesses will be closed until at least February half-term in order to help control the spread of Covid-19. This…
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5 JanuaryCoronavirus
UKH offers industry assistance for vaccine roll-out
UKHospitality has pledged to assist the government in the roll-out of vaccines, following the news that Covid-19 restrictions will be tightening further. Yesterday (4 January), Boris Johnson announced England will return to lockdown level restrictions until, at least, the middle of February. Similar restrictions are also now in place in…
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Dec- 2020 -24 DecemberTrade Associations
UKH calls for extra relief amid Boxing Day restrictions
UKHospitality is calling on the government to provide immediate relief measures to save the hospitality sector, following the announcement that six million more people in the east and south east of England are to enter Tier 4 on Boxing Day. This comes after another Covid-19 variant from South Africa was…
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22 DecemberComment
Reflecting on 2020 as a restaurant owner
I am preparing for the new year with a sense of weariness and exhaustion. 2020 has, to say the least, had its moments of worry, pain, emotion, and tears for the country and certainly most of us in hospitality. ‘Unprecedented’ is now a hackneyed phrase and that perhaps that speaks…
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9 DecemberCoronavirus
UKH: New rent moratoria will help avoid ‘immediate bloodbath’
The recent extension to the lease forfeiture and debt enforcement moratoria will help avoid an “immediate bloodbath” of business failures across hospitality, but it must be accompanied by support to resolve Covid-related rent debt, UKHospitality has warned. The trade body has welcomed today’s announcement by communities secretary Robert Jenrick that…
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1 DecemberCoronavirus
Scottish Government urged to rethink restrictions
UKHospitality has led calls from leading hospitality operators for the Scottish Government to adjust the restrictions currently placed on the industry. Over 60 hospitality bosses have written to the First Minister regarding the tiered system that is “squeezing the remaining life out of the sector”. The letter calls for a…
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