Prime Minister Boris Johnston has agreed to meet with members of the hospitality sector to discuss the appointment of a Minister for Hospitality.
The news follows a petition signed by more than 200,000 people forcing a debate in parliament on January 11. The threshold for consideration for debate is 100,000.
The PM agreed today to Petitions Committee Chair Catherine McKinnell MP's call for the Government to engage with the hospitality sector and meet with petitioners and campaigner including the creator of the ‘Create a Minister for Hospitality in the UK Government’ petition.
Minister for Small Business, Consumers and Labour Markets, Paul Scully, will meet with petitioners to discuss their call for a Minister for Hospitality.
Responsibility for Hospitality – though a sector of more than 3 million people - is currently shared by the Department for Business, Energy & Industrial Strategy and the Department for Digital, Culture, Media & Sport.
The petition read: “The UK hospitality industry. Responsible for around 3m jobs, generating £130bn in activity, resulting in £38bn in taxation. Yet, unlike the Arts or Sports, we do not have a dedicated Minister. We are asking that a Minister for Hospitality be created for the current, and successive governments.
“A dedicated Minister would liaise with industry representatives. We believe such a Minister would have been beneficial to Government and Industry during the pandemic.
“As the UK seeks to encourage investment & tourism back to the UK in coming years, the vision that UK hospitality industry portrays of the UK is excellence, innovation, inspiration.
“We need a Minister who can listen to concerns on taxation and legislation and bring forward suggestions to the chancellor and policy.”