In the Restaurants Association of Ireland (RAI) president’s report for May, new RAI president Paul Lenehan has said that rising costs and the war in Ukraine will cause challenges for the restaurant sector in the coming months.
Details
The report, which was published on RAI.ie, stated, ‘Rising costs, staff shortages and sustainability are the common topics of conversation – we’re not alone – but what can be done about it? Nobody yet has the answers. New figures from the Irish Tourism Industry Confederation suggest that the sector continued to recover in March. This is obviously good news for our restaurants, cafes and hospitality businesses that are dependent on tourism. However, figures still suggest that arrivals into the country are 31% lower than they were in 2019. Rising costs and the terrible and unaccusable war in Ukraine present significant challenges for our sector in the next few months.’
‘Government Needs To Stay The Course’ When It Comes To Sector Support
Lenehan added in the report, ‘It’s my view that the Irish government needs to stay the course in terms of supporting the tourism industry. The deferring of the scheduled VAT increase must be confirmed sooner rather than later. This, along with rising costs and staff shortages, are the three main topics I will be focusing on over my first few months as president.’
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