UK hospitality businesses reel from Omicron surge

UK hospitality businesses reel from Omicron surge

LONDON: Britain’s pandemic-weary hospitality businesses have taken a fresh hit from soaring coronavirus cases fueled by the Omicron variant, as anxious customers curtail socializing and cancel bookings over the Christmas period.

Pubs, restaurants and bars-already struggling after nearly two years of reduced revenues due to the pandemic-now face lost income at typically the busiest and most valuable time of the year. “Normally this is the biggest week of the year (and) it’s completely crushed,” Pascal Aussignac, chef and owner of five French restaurants in Britain, told AFP.

The UK government last week switched to its so-called “plan B” to deal with coronavirus, advising people to work from home if they can since Monday and mandating they wear masks in most indoor settings. MPs also backed proposals Tuesday to introduce a COVID pass for people to access large-scale events.

It comes as cases double roughly every two days and health officials reported more than 93,000 new infections Friday, the third consecutive record daily tally. “It looks like we have less people,” said James Ross, co-founder of Badger Badger, a pub, eatery and daytime workspace in southeast London. He added the business had seen a “significant” drop in income, with revenue down by 10 percent