ASAP, the trade body for members of the serviced apartments and aparthotel industry, has called on the Government to recognise how the latest coronavirus advice can create potential issues for the hospitality industry.
The latest coronavirus guidelines advise the public against non-essential social interaction at social venues such as pubs, bars, hotels and clubs.
In response to this announcement, James Foice, CEO of ASAP, said: “We are in danger of a devastating shock to business and, sadly, closure. Mass redundancies across the industry seem inevitable. Nobody knows when, or even whether, we are likely to return to anything like normality.”
Foice added that until businesses are forced by law to stay closed, they have to decide whether to open each day for any customers who may risk the coronavirus.
He continued that if businesses are forced to close, they will be able to “explore the insurance process to cover costs.”
Foice now calls on the Ministers to address the position of the hospitality industry.
He concluded: “We hope that the scope and effect of this virus has been overestimated, and that we can all return to a successful summer season as the crisis ebbs. But in case we’re in this for the long haul, we need clarification for our members and for the travelling public, and we need it now.”
