South Yorkshire's hospitality industry warns of job losses and closures under new Covid tiers
The Prime Minister has announced a tougher tier system, to tackle coronavirus
A number of hospitality workers in South Yorkshire say they have already been laid off, following the Prime Minister's announcement of the new coronavirus tier system.
Boris Johnson revealed tougher levels of local lockdowns, which will replace the national rules next week.
Tier Three - the tier Doncaster, Rotherham, Barnsley and Sheffield were all under before country-wide restrictions were imposed - will now see bars, restaurants and hotels forced to stay closed.
A hospitality industry expert is warning businesses will be destroyed, if we are put back under the strictest conditions.
Consultant Tom Lord said: "There are already job losses from the announcement, so what are we going to be like in January, when venues haven't had Christmas, haven't had New Year's Eve, when support is starting to taper away?"
He continued: "By this point, in hospitality, you would already be fully booked for the entirety of December. Up to about 25 per cent of your yearly takings come in December. Businesses aren't going to have that and businesses just aren't going to make it through.
Tom believes the industry has been unfairly 'picked on' and wants to see more proof surrounding closures. He said: "We are being targeted and we still haven't seen any science to back it up."
The government says it understands the challenges the measures pose for hospitality, and that it is offering an enourmous amount of support.