New variant lowers holiday season occupancy rate in Europe

European companies ask for help in confronting Omicron

The British government has announced an estimated £1 billion in aid to the hospitality sector.

From the source

New government restrictions across Britain and in other parts of Europe, due to growing concern about the highly contagious 'Omicron' mutant, have dramatically reduced business in restaurants, pubs, event venues and shops, prompting urgent calls for additional government help. According to the New York Times.

The British government has announced nearly £1 billion in aid to the hospitality sector, with one-off £6000 grants and sick leave discounts for employees.

The French government also plans to provide assistance of up to 12 million euros to travel agencies, the events sector, restaurants and in-house entertainment companies, which incurred significant operating losses this month.

The governments of Spain and Italy also decided to hold an emergency meeting to discuss whether they would adopt new restrictions.

"We are at a different stage now, where the shutdown is likely to be more costly," said Klaus Vestsen, chief economist for the eurozone.

He added: "So far, we are used to lockdowns followed by government support, and I think that will be the case as well, but the support will be with more and less comprehensive conditions than before."

Britain recorded the largest number of cases of "Corona" in Europe during the past seven days, according to the World Health Organization, which called on organizations representing more than 100,000 companies across the country to demand Prime Minister Boris Johnson for more tax breaks and grants. .

Those fears were echoed in other European countries.

In Germany, companies are pressuring the government to lift new procedures that require customers to show a certificate of vaccination or have finally recovered from the disease.

In the Netherlands, where the government announced a lockdown over the weekend, calls for help exceeded 400, seven times the number recorded the previous week.

And although a significant increase in cases of the new mutant has not yet led to the strict lockdown imposed by the Dutch government, British companies are arguing that uncertainty during the height of the holiday season is putting their survival at risk, noting that the retail, hospitality and leisure sectors are “teetering on the edge of the abyss.”

The hospitality sector, which lost ground in the holiday season last year, has been dependent on a busy season this year.

Simon Emini, CEO of Smith and Turner Feller, which owns nearly 400 restaurants in Britain, said: "We are back to where we were in March 2020, and that the company temporarily closed 20 restaurants."

And in the Netherlands, where most shops, bars, restaurants, gyms, outdoor sports, cultural venues and schools are closed until January, some business owners fear they will never reopen.

France also scrapped the list of year-end celebrations and banned tourists from entering Britain, in a blow to the ski sector, and the Swedish government imposed some new restrictions, which included allowing seated customers only to serve in restaurants and bars.

Ireland also imposed an early curfew, starting at eight in the evening.

Restaurants in Denmark stopped offering their services after 10 pm, and a list of venues and event spaces, including theaters, museums, zoos and concert halls, were closed.

Switzerland's restrictions, which prevent unvaccinated people from going to restaurants, gyms and museums, are expected to last until January 24.

Retailers reported a 37% drop in sales from Christmas 2019.

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