A restaurant owner has lost £42,000 worth of bookings and ‘wasted’ seven days worth of food after the Government announced London would be plunged into tier three lockdown with just over 24 hours notice.

Andy Jones, 40, who owns Jones & Sons restaurant in Dalston, east London, says he and his employees have been ‘left in the lurch’ as restaurants in the capital and parts of the south-east are ordered to close by Wednesday.

Many Jones & Sons staff are set to be furloughed under the Government scheme – but some new hires are ineligible, leaving them without income during the festive period.

It comes after the businessman lost £25,000 in one day after hundreds of customers cancelled bookings when ministers announced the capital would be plunged into tier two lockdown in October.

Speaking on Monday evening, Mr Jones said: ‘This week, we had about £42,000 worth of bookings in the system already.

‘It’s a big restaurant, and when you’re stripping away that sort of money from people’s cash flow, when you take away the livelihoods of staff who have just joined me… there’s just a whole group of people left in the lurch.’

The restaurant owner says his ‘biggest gripe’ is that ‘busy restaurants plan ahead’.

He said: ‘We’ve got a week’s worth of food pretty much either prepped ready to go, bought in already – which you can’t send back – or on order.

‘Think about the wasted food, how many kids in this country and in other countries that would kill for that food.

‘I’m going to have to pay all my bills in January, I’ve got to pay my rent in 10 days, it’s unacceptable to give the hospitality industry 24 hours’ notice.’

The hospitality industry has been targeted by the Government numerous times during the pandemic with strict guidelines imposed.

However, Mr Jones says the industry has ‘gone to the nth degree’ to make sure spaces are safe for customers.

He said: ‘We have all of the necessary procedures in place, everybody has to wear a face mask, everybody has to sanitise their hands… this industry has gone to the nth degree to make sure we can remain open, and it’s just been ripped away from us.’

Under tier three restrictions, people are banned from meeting anyone outside their household or bubble indoors, in private gardens or outdoor venues.

They can still meet people outside their household or bubble in spaces such as at parks, or the beach. Shops, gyms and personal care services are also allowed to stay open.

Metro.co.uk has contacted the Government for comment.

Get in touch with our news team by emailing us at [email protected].

For more stories like this, check our news page.

Source: Read Full Article