JD Wetherspoon boss Tim Martin said he hopes booster vaccinations could see more older customers return (Dominic Lipinski/PA)
(Picture: PA Archive)The boss of pub chain JD Wetherspoon has criticised the new restrictions brought in by the government and warned about the affect they will have on his business.
Tim Martin said Plan B restrictions announced last week amounted to “lockdown by stealth”.
“The repeated warnings and calls for restrictions, mainly from SAGE members and academics, combined with arbitrary changes of direction from the Government, invariably at short notice, affect customer sentiment and trade,” he said. “In effect, the country appears to be heading towards a lockdown by stealth.”
Prime Minister Boris Johnson last week introduced new restrictions including widespread mandatory mask wearing and advice for people to work from home if they can. Pubs and other hospitality venues are still allowed to open but many businesses are facing a steep drop off in trade as people voluntarily reduce contact for fear of catching the Omicron variant.
Wetherspoon said caution among customers and the new restrictions were hitting its business. The company warned it was likely to make a loss or, at best, be “marginally profitable” when it reports half-year results.
Martin said: “The company will continue to concentrate on providing high standards of service, reasonable prices and regular, small upgrades to the business.”
Shares in the business were down 37.5p, or 4.3%, at 829.5p.
Martin has been a consistent critic of restrictions and measures affecting pubs, arguing that people are more likely to catch the virus at home than at a pub.
He said today: “There have been no outbreaks, as defined by the health authorities, of Covid-19 among customers in Wetherspoon pubs. The typical British pub, contrary to received opinion in academia, is usually a bastion of social distancing.”
