ON Monday May 11 the government launched its road map to recovery, backed up by the Chancellor’s announcement on Tuesday May 12 regarding the extension of furlough until October, with a number of limitations /conditions attached.

Both for many are hugely welcome, especially as more than 2m hospitality jobs are furloughed, and the supply chain is threatened with significant damage.

Certainly, the powers that be are steering us towards a cautious return to normality, but in reality, there is still much to consider, especially across every facet of the hospitality sector.

The government’s recovery plan acknowledges that life will be different, at least for the foreseeable future. It declares safety is paramount, that it will somehow juggle this whilst attempting to protect livelihoods and slowly return to some sort of normal.

There is no doubt that due to the sheer diversity of the hospitality sector that there is no one-size-fits-all model for reopening. There are hugely varied business models across the many sub-sectors of the industry, which as a result means there are considerable practical challenges that need to be overcome.

Whilst the push to reopen for July 4 is encouraging we need flesh on the bones. A number of core considerations need to be taken into account, and above all else the health and wellbeing of our customers and staff is paramount.

We can’t have a wishy-washy approach at any level, after all this is potentially about people’s lives.

JAMIE SHAIL

Rothay Manor

Ambleside