Budget: Cross-party warning of major job losses without immediate support for Welsh hospitality

Budget: Cross-party warning of major job losses without immediate support for Welsh hospitality

Parliamentarians urge Chancellor to provide targeted help for hospitality in the Budget

Cross-party parliamentarians from Wales have written to the Chancellor ahead of the Autumn Budget, warning that soaring costs are placing thousands of jobs at risk and accelerating the decline of Welsh high streets.

Coordinated by the Chair of the APPG, Llinos Medi MP, members of the Hospitality, Events, Major Food and Drink Businesses in Wales APPG, which includes Plaid Cymru’s four MPs and two Peers, Labour MP for Gower Tonia Antoniazzi and Conservative Shadow Parliamentary Under-Secretary of State for Wales Baroness Bloomfield, have outlined the scale of the crisis facing the sector.

Since the 2024 Budget, the trading environment has deteriorated sharply, with ONS data showing 84,000 hospitality job losses across the UK between October 2024 and August 2025, a figure projected to rise to 111,000 by Budget day next week.

The APPG warns that job losses in Wales alone are now estimated to exceed those resulting from the closure of Port Talbot steelworks. With more than 165,000 people employed in hospitality and the sector contributing £4 billion to the Welsh economy, MPs stress that urgent intervention is needed to prevent further economic and social damage.

The letter highlights deep concern that the Welsh Government’s proposed new business rates relief scheme currently excludes hospitality and leisure. Without intervention, businesses across Wales will be required to pay full business rates from April, a move MPs say will have "potentially crippling effects" on jobs and town centres.

The group is calling on the Chancellor to ensure Wales receives the funding needed to extend meaningful support, whether through Barnett consequentials from transitional relief in England or through a bespoke Welsh hospitality fund.

They also urge the Chancellor to introduce additional measures in the Autumn Budget to safeguard the sector’s future, including:

1. Reform business rates: Ensure Wales has the required funds to provide meaningful rates reductions for the hospitality and leisure sectors for the new rating period.

2. National Insurance Contributions: To acknowledge and address the unsustainable costs for many businesses of increased Employers National Insurance Contributions and work with the sector to develop a long-term solution.

3. A cut in VAT on hospitality: This would stimulate investment for businesses, enable them to lower prices, boost our attractiveness to overseas visitors and ultimately increase growth potential with more venues able to thrive.

Chair of the All-Party Parliamentary Group on Hospitality, Events, Major Food and Drink Businesses in Wales, Llinos Medi MP, said:

"Hospitality businesses across Wales are facing immense challenges. Rising costs and high business rates are putting thousands of jobs at risk and adding further pressures on high streets that are already on the brink.

"This cross-party letter reflects a shared concern from across the political spectrum and across Wales. We see it in our communities every day, in cafés, pubs, restaurants, and venues that employ tens of thousands of people and are central to the life of our towns and villages, but are struggling to survive.

"We are asking the Chancellor to use this Budget to provide the support these businesses urgently need. Without action, we risk real damage to both jobs and the places that bring people together in Wales."