Regenerating the high street dominated the UKHospitality conference. By Ian Taylor


UKHospitality seeks freeze in business rates


The UKHospitality association demanded a shift in the burden of business rates from the high street to online businesses as it outlined a series of demands, and warned ministers: “Ignore us at your peril.”


Kate Nicholls, UKHospitality


chief executive, told the association’s conference in London last week: “Hospitality is the country’s third-largest employer. It creates one in eight new jobs. We’re twice the size of the financial services sector. We touch lives in every constituency, at every skill level. “The sector is forecast to double [in size] if we get the right conditions for growth, [but] we can’t do it while we face significant headwinds because of government policy.


“One-third of our £130 billion


turnover goes to the government.” Nicholls demanded the


government: “Champion the high street through a root-and-branch reform of business rates, [and] boost productivity by doubling the National Insurance Contribution


threshold to take the lowest-paid out of tax.”


She said: “We need a fair and


level playing field with digital businesses. We want a freeze on business rates for the next two years, and we want the government to look at new digital taxes to take the burden off business rates and put it on the digital economy.” Nicholls’ demand was backed by industry leaders. Travelodge chief executive Peter


Gowers said: “The biggest issue is regenerating the high street. We need to invest in the high street – and the business rates system prevents that. If we invest in properties, we incur higher business rates.” Steve Richards, chief executive of the Casual Dining Group, which operates more than 300 restaurants,


said: “We’d like a reduction in tax and a reorganisation of business rates. Online businesses are not paying their way.” The conference was UKHospitality’s first since its formation by the merger of the British Hospitality Association and Association of Licensed Multiple Retailers in March. “We came together against the


backdrop of real and significant threats to our industry,” said Nicholls. “We need to reduce the costs


of doing business. Unnecessary regulation and cost pressures are crippling our sector.” Nicholls called on the


government to endorse a sector deal for tourism “to develop home-grown skills and reduce unnecessary costs”.


Minister hails sector as ‘boon to economy’


Tourism minister Michael Ellis hailed travel and hospitality as “a boon to the economy”. He told the UKHospitality conference:


“You’re one of the largest employers in the country. You’re one of the fastest generators of jobs. You’re delivering record-breaking results. “Travel and hospitality provides large-scale


employment. It helps Britain’s ‘soft power’. It’s a boon to the economy. There is not another sector


that delivers this all-round package. I applaud what you do. I’m proud to be your advocate across government.” However, he said: “There is a widespread


perception that hospitality is not a long-term career [and] we need to disabuse young people of that.” Ellis was appointed minister for tourism in January.


DIRECTORS: Smaller firms often don’t have a female on the board


19 July 2018 travelweekly.co.uk 63


“We need to invest in the high street – and the business rates system prevents that”


NICHOLLS: ‘A third of our £130bn turnover goes to the government’


‘Women shouldn’t be excluded from company boards’


There is “no excuse” for excluding women from company boards and the time for talking about this is “over”, UK hospitality leaders heard last week. Holly Addison, head of hospitality at recruitment firm Odgers Berndtson, said: “More women than ever are on the boards of UK companies – 29% of FTSE100 board positions are held by women – but there is still a long way to go. “Too many small businesses don’t


have any women on boards. There is no excuse for all-male boards.” She quoted a recent survey


that suggested 63% of hospitality sector leaders “agree there is a problem around diversity, but two-thirds don’t think it’s a problem in their own business”. More than half (55%) of businesses have a diversity policy and “82% [of hospitality leaders] thought there should be more women on leadership teams, but schemes to encourage [female appointments] are not common – only 28% have one”. Addison insisted: “The time


for talking about this is over.” Jon Terry, global financial services people leader at PwC, said: “Your ability to understand your customer must start with your leadership team looking like your customers.”


Page 1  |  Page 2  |  Page 3  |  Page 4  |  Page 5  |  Page 6  |  Page 7  |  Page 8  |  Page 9  |  Page 10  |  Page 11  |  Page 12  |  Page 13  |  Page 14  |  Page 15  |  Page 16  |  Page 17  |  Page 18  |  Page 19  |  Page 20  |  Page 21  |  Page 22  |  Page 23  |  Page 24  |  Page 25  |  Page 26  |  Page 27  |  Page 28  |  Page 29  |  Page 30  |  Page 31  |  Page 32  |  Page 33  |  Page 34  |  Page 35  |  Page 36  |  Page 37  |  Page 38  |  Page 39  |  Page 40  |  Page 41  |  Page 42  |  Page 43  |  Page 44  |  Page 45  |  Page 46  |  Page 47  |  Page 48  |  Page 49  |  Page 50  |  Page 51  |  Page 52  |  Page 53  |  Page 54  |  Page 55  |  Page 56  |  Page 57  |  Page 58  |  Page 59  |  Page 60  |  Page 61  |  Page 62  |  Page 63  |  Page 64  |  Page 65  |  Page 66  |  Page 67  |  Page 68  |  Page 69  |  Page 70  |  Page 71  |  Page 72