HBAA chair, Lex Butler has called on the government to cut VAT for business accommodation rates for up to a year.
"An immediate 12 month cut on VAT for business accommodation rates, venue rates, as well as services for organising and presenting meetings and events, is vital to stimulate business and to encourage people to meet face-to-face and stay overnight in accommodation again. We also need a delay in payment of Corporation Tax,” Butler said.
“Otherwise we will see much higher losses to our workforce than the over 30 per cent redundancies from July onwards that we forecast recently.”
The call for action comes after the government announced a £1.57bn emergency support package to help protect the futures of theatres, galleries and museums, but failed to mention hotels and event venues.
"The pressure that the arts industry has been mounting has generated special financial support. HBAA has continually lobbied for such support across our industry saying that a similar package is needed. We must receive this specific support now to boost our business, increase customer confidence, to save jobs and our industry."
While government announcements have not yet directly addressed how and when the events industry can reopen, there is speculation that the Chancellor of the Exchequer, Rishi Sunak will announce a cut in the tax rate from the current level of 20 per cent, during his planned announcement on Wednesday 8 July.
More specifically, Sunak is expected to announce VAT cuts for industry sectors, including hospitality and leisure, to soften the already harsh blow suffered from not being able to reopen yet.
Alongside lobbying the government to allow the industry to reopen, HBAA has also been supporting its members through a series of initiatives including webinars, community talks and drafting lobbying letter templates for members to easily send to their MPs.
All of the association's previous webinars and online discussions are available to watch on-demand on its website.
A desire to travel led Holly Patrick to the business meetings and events world and she’s never looked back. Holly takes a particular interest in event sustainability and creating a diverse and inclusive industry. When she’s not working, she can be found rolling skating along Brighton seafront listening to an eclectic playlist, featuring the likes of Patti Smith, Sean Paul, and Arooj Aftab.
