“As an industry, we have always understood the need to balance public health and the economy, however we are now at a point where many hundreds of businesses simply do not have the income or funding support to remain solvent. Businesses in Tier 2 areas had hoped for an upturn in business following the slight ease of restrictions as the majority of custom in Tier 2 would have been likely to come from the Central Belt area, however due to the new travel restrictions, this will not be possible.
It is absolutely critical now that all tourism and hospitality businesses impacted by these restrictions in whatever tier they are in have immediate access to a strengthened package of support from the Scottish Government to enable them to meet their overheads and retain what staff they had hoped to keep on their payroll over the coming weeks and beyond to avoid permanent closure and a significant wave of redundancies.
The STA has formally requested a meeting with the First Minister to discuss the impact of the new restrictions and our renewed call for a robust package of support for the sector.”
Marc Crothall, Chief Executive, STA