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Bars closed again in Southport, UK, due to Covid19 - Liverpool City Region Tier 3

DUE to a rising number of Coronavirus cases, the Liverpool City Region was the first Region in the UK to be placed under Tier Three, the “very high risk” category. Since Wednesday, 14 October 2020, under the new rules introduced by the Prime Minister, Boris Johnson, businesses have been forced to close and people's daily lives have been massively impacted, within the Region. The main businesses affected are:- pubs, bars, casinos, betting shops, gyms, and leisure centres, along with adult gaming centres, all have been forced to close for at least 4 weeks. We went out and about in Southport to find out what the impact was on the Town Centre's pubs and spoke to the Manager of Sacrebleu, in Southport's Town Centre, about the closure and its effects.

As a result of the lack of Central Government help, a ₤40m emergency "lifeline" fund was set up to protect the Liverpool City Region's hospitality and leisure businesses from the devastating effects of the new Covid19 regulations. This fund was not set up by the Prime Minister but by Metro Mayor Steve Rotheram and the Mayor of Liverpool, Joe Anderson OBE, along with the leaders of the City Region’s 6 Local Authorities.

Off-camera we learned that many other businesses, from:- printers to estate agents, hotel owners, and coffee shop owners, that the effect of tier three is also having a major hit on all businesses, not just those who had been ordered to close. Sadly, this new fund like most of the Central Government funds does not cover them, but the supply chain now faces a very uncertain future as a result. If they go, this will affect any start-up of the businesses currently being helped, not to mention the massive job losses that are now looming for businesses that could have otherwise survived. But all the businesses are praising the fact Liverpool City Region's leaders are doing their best with very little funds, despite what many now see as:- "efforts to the contrary" from Central Government .

We also heard off-camera from a local Southport Town Centre business owner that he was very worried about the future. He also said:- "Sadly, this "lifeline" might not prove effective as the effects of the closure are far wider spread than just the hospitality and leisure industry. I know that without Government help in the next 2 weeks, many other businesses, of all sizes, will go under, and that is within the other areas of the local economy. We are now pleading for help from Central Government , but it is increasingly likely the plea for help will fall on deaf ears."

Please do shop locally and help these independent local businesses, all vital to our Region's future recovery.  As an off beat addition, 'REGION' is an anagram of 'IGNORE,' so it begs the question of how Westminster sees the North?

Useful links:-

►  Eligible businesses can find out more, including Terms and Conditions, at:- Sefton.Gov.UK/Hospitality-Fund.

►  For more information about support you can also visit:- Liverpool.Gov.UK.

►  For more information about the bar, please go to:- Facebook.Com/SacrebleuSouthport .

►  If you need to talk and you feel your mental health is at risk, please call Samaritans or visit:- Samaritans.Org.

36% of North West businesses have a plan in place for a localised lockdown

A study reveals that only 36% of North West businesses have a plan in place for a localised lockdown, and 36% have plans in place to deal with the 2nd wave. Larger firms are slightly better prepared for localised lockdowns at 45% and a 2nd wave at 39% than SMEs, but the figures are still under ½ of businesses. The report, entitled:- 'Better Business Resilience,' was commissioned by Driving for Better Business (DfBB), the Government -backed Highways England programme, surveying 150 SME business owners and over 150 decision makers at board level in large enterprises.

The report shows a snapshot of the attitudes and behaviours of SMEs and large enterprises towards business resilience across the UK. The report demonstrates the extent to which UK businesses were prepared for the Covid19 lockdown, their responsiveness to lockdown, top concerns for business leaders, information currently reported at board level, changes to staff travel and mobility requirements, and their future preparedness.  The top 3 business concerns for the North West are staff welfare and wellbeing (56%), operating profitably within the Government 's Covid19 guidelines (48%), and the ability to stay in business in the event of further lockdowns (48%). Mental health was top of the corporate agenda for North West businesses with 56% of North West leaders reporting the impact of Covid19 on staff mental health to their Board.  When it came to future working arrangements, 52% of North West businesses have already put flexible working policies in place to enable working from home and 52% anticipate an increase in working from home in the future. 56% expect to replace face to face meetings with video calls, 44% anticipate a reduction in travel to meetings using public transport.

Commenting on the findings Simon Turner, Campaign Manager, Driving for Better Business said:- "Every organisation puts in place a business strategy and a plan to deliver on that strategy. They weave in contingencies that enable the plan to be flexible and to react to changing market conditions. Very few would have entered 2020 with a contingency to deal with the fallout from a global pandemic though. Covid19 caused thousands of deaths across the world and we are only beginning to see the longer term impact it will have on society, the economy and businesses. Overall, the findings showed that business leaders have similar concerns, though those that run SMEs are more concerned than larger enterprises. Top of mind for business leaders are rebuilding their business and surviving any additional lockdown measures, while managing workforce welfare and mental health. The economic outlook is uncertain, to say the least, with experts divided over exactly how badly different sectors could be affected. On the whole, however, our survey sample were optimistic. One thing that is certain though, is that firms must adjust quickly to the current environment and take every opportunity to minimise operational costs and improve efficiencies in order to give themselves the best chance of survival, and the ability to thrive as soon as conditions allow."