Price hikes and shrinking workforces will increase pressure on the nighttime economy, warns the the Night Time Industries Association (NTIA).
The trade association conducted a flash poll of more than 200 businesses, and has called on the Government to rethink tax hikes coming into force today.
TE NTIA estimatees the tax increases will pile on a burden of between £30,000 and £80,000 per business, threatening closures, job losses, and long-term damage to the economy.
In the poll, nearly half (46 percent) of respondents expect their workforce to shrink within the next 12 months, while 62 percent anticipate having to reduce staff numbers and operating hours.
With rising operational costs, nearly nine out of 10 (88 percent) of businesses plan to increase their prices in the next year, with more than half (56 percent) expecting price hikes of between 5-10% just to remain viable.
Michael Kill, CEO of the NTIA said: “The Government is sleepwalking into disaster. Businesses have cut everything they can - jobs, hours, services - just to survive, and yet they’re still being punished. These tax hikes will be the final nail in the coffin for thousands.
"The Government has refused to listen, and now they are actively pushing businesses into collapse. If they do not act now, they will be responsible for the destruction of an entire sector, the loss of countless jobs, and the irreversible decline of our nightlife economy."
The trade association conducted a flash poll of more than 200 businesses, and has called on the Government to rethink tax hikes coming into force today.
TE NTIA estimatees the tax increases will pile on a burden of between £30,000 and £80,000 per business, threatening closures, job losses, and long-term damage to the economy.
In the poll, nearly half (46 percent) of respondents expect their workforce to shrink within the next 12 months, while 62 percent anticipate having to reduce staff numbers and operating hours.
With rising operational costs, nearly nine out of 10 (88 percent) of businesses plan to increase their prices in the next year, with more than half (56 percent) expecting price hikes of between 5-10% just to remain viable.
Michael Kill, CEO of the NTIA said: “The Government is sleepwalking into disaster. Businesses have cut everything they can - jobs, hours, services - just to survive, and yet they’re still being punished. These tax hikes will be the final nail in the coffin for thousands.
"The Government has refused to listen, and now they are actively pushing businesses into collapse. If they do not act now, they will be responsible for the destruction of an entire sector, the loss of countless jobs, and the irreversible decline of our nightlife economy."