This afternoon, the Welsh Government have confirmed that, from Friday 4th December 2020, Welsh pubs, restaurants and cafes will be banned from serving alcohol and will be unable to open to customers beyond 18:00 GMT (other than for takeaways). Raising her concern about the impact of such a rule on local businesses, the Member of the Welsh Parliament for Aberconwy – Janet Finch-Saunders MS – said that:
“Mark Drakeford’s devastating rules are wrong for Aberconwy. Between 20 and 26 November, Conwy County only had 19.6 cases per 100,000 whilst Wales as a whole had 211.3 per 100,000.“In fact, on Saturday Conwy County had a rate of 9.4 per 100,000.
“Welsh Labour’s action is totally inappropriate and disproportionate for Conwy, and so the Welsh Government needs to think again.
“The Welsh Government must urgently come forward with the scientific data that supports such an arbitrary, nationwide ruling. I know that many people will be devastated by today’s news, rightly acknowledging that pubs and restaurants throughout Aberconwy have gone to extreme lengths to enact industry leading safety measures as a means to protect customers.
“In my tour of businesses throughout the constituency over the weekend, as a means of marking the run-up to small business Saturday, owners and staff were clear that they want to be empowered to trade. Instead, they remain at the mercy of this administration’s continued and unsubstantiated brazen attack on hospitality businesses. They deserve better.
“With a loose promise of financial support for those businesses affected, it is vital that we do not witness a repeat of the confusion and delay in the grant systems after the recent firebreak period. After all, a recent survey found that 75% of respondents did not manage to file an application to the Welsh Government’s ERF Phase 3 scheme, before its premature closure.
“Grants must be delivered swiftly, and whichever body is made responsible for their delivery supported through what will be an inevitable avalanche of applications for vital and necessary funding support. Businesses cannot be left wanting as a result of continued mismanagement by this Welsh Labour-led Government.”
ENDS
Photo: Amie Johnson on Unsplash
