Member Article

Chancellor unveils 50% reduction deal on restaurant meals

Chancellor Rishi Sunak has announced a creative new “Eat Out to Help Out” scheme, which will see UK households given vouchers to use when dining out.

Running throughout the month of August, the vouchers will give households a 50% reduction on the meals, up to £10 per head, on sit down meals and non-alcoholic drinks. The vouchers will be able to be used on Mondays, Tuesdays and Wednesdays.

The scheme will apply to everyone across the country, including children and is designed to kickstart the UK economy following the financial stagnation caused by lockdown measures.

Visitors to restaurants dining out will be able to benefit from a maximum of discount of £10-per-head off a meal; for instance, if a couple went out and spent £30 on food and soft drinks, they would each be able to use the voucher to take £7.50 per head off the meal, totalling a £15 discount – equal to 50 per cent. Were that couple to spend £80, only a discount of £10 per head would apply – £20 total – despite this representing a discount of 25 per cent. The move was welcomed by industry experts.

Matthew Stubbs, CEO BookingTek, which created the TableRes app commented, “This is welcome news from the Chancellor, at a time when many restaurants and pubs are in dire need of new customers to boost revenue. Key to this recovery process should also be the upgrading and installation of new technology, so that venues can offer speedy, safe and efficient service to people who are still fearful of the risks posed by the Covid-19 outbreak.

Mr Stubbs added, “This is easily achieved with contactless technology like order-pay mobile apps. They facilitate touchless payments, as well as enabling customers to order food and drinks via their phone, eliminating the need to handle items like menus, bills and cards whilst also completely removing face-to-face contact.

Sonny Sehgal, CEO, Transputec, which recently launched Thermavis, a new temperature checking technology added, “As restaurants begin to reopen their doors, a key concern on the mind of all returning workers and customers will be their own safety. This is exactly why core technology such as non-intrusive temperature checking cameras like Thermavis must be employed – flagging individuals with a body temperature will be crucial in slowing the spread of Covid-19, and key workers will be given peace of mind that this important line of defence is protecting them from working alongside infected individuals.”

Patrick Sullivan, CEO of the Parliament Street think tank added, “This is creative thinking from an ambitious Chancellor and I congratulate the government for this key policy that will help stimulate economic growth.”

This was posted in Bdaily's Members' News section by Nick Till .