Exclusive: Two-thirds of pubs lack outdoor space to open on Monday
Two-thirds of pubs cannot open on Monday because they lack the outside space to serve customers safely, it has emerged.
Pubs, cafes and restaurants in England can open for customers seated outdoors from April 12 in what could herald a surge in European-style cafe culture.
Despite reports of hundreds of bars, pubs and restaurants applying for outdoor drinking and dining licences, the trade body UKHospitality warned that even those that do open might make only around one fifth of their usual sales.
Analysis seen by The Telegraph shows that 25,979 sites have outdoor space – 43 per cent of all those in England. Only a quarter of high street bars and restaurants do, rising to 46 per cent of suburban sites and 68 per cent of rural outlets.
Community and food-led pubs were more likely to have outdoor areas than restaurants, casual dining businesses and bars, the research by UKHospitality found. Outside areas at high street bars were "almost exclusively standing areas".
Kate Nicholls, the organisation's chief executive, told The Telegraph: "While Monday is a very welcome return for hospitality as a whole, it represents the start of a very gradual return to normality and it will be a long road to recovery for many.
"We have to remember fewer than two in five will even be able to open on Monday – the vast majority will remain closed without revenue for another five weeks. Just 22 per cent of the sector's trading is likely to return, and that is weather dependent.
"So while it is great to be able to bring our teams back to work and welcome back family and friends to socialise safely, this is not sufficient to ensure the long-term viability of business and jobs.
"That is why the Government needs to stick to the roadmap plan to lift social distancing restrictions from June 21 to allow our sector to survive and thrive."
Under the reopening plans, people will not need to order a substantial meal with alcoholic drinks and there will be no 10pm curfew, but customers must order, eat and drink while seated at a table.
They will have to follow the "rule of six" or be in a group of any size with no more than two households present, as well as check in to NHS Test and Trace.
Separately,Rachael Robathan, the the leader of Tory-run Westminster council, has written to Kwasi Kwarteng, the Business Secretary, urging the Government to bring forward indoor opening for pubs and bars from May.
She said: "A suggested alternative would be the implementation of the restricted form of indoor dining, limited to one family group, with strict social distancing measures in force throughout the venue. This would allow some venues to be able to operate, even with those indoor limits in place."
Ms Robathan warned that many pubs and bars in the capital will only open at weekends and said: "The hospitality sector continues to face real peril, with difficult choices presented as a result of what the roadmap does and does not allow.
"The costs and challenges associated with a reopening limited to outdoor space, if there is indeed any available to them, means that many businesses have informed us that they must delay their reopening until May, slowing down the recovery.
"This is a particular challenge for central London venues where there is less likelihood of businesses having access to outdoor space in the first place, compared to rural areas and market towns.
"For many premises, it is simply not viable to open, although we will continue our sector-leading al fresco programme to extend this opportunity to as many businesses as we can." The Department for Business, Energy and Industrial Strategy was approached for comment.
