20 April 2020
The Restaurant Association has been urging the Government to provide additional support to our small business employers in the hospitality industry, particularly looking at the scope for financial rent and lease relief. The letter to Finance Minister, Grant Robertson below, outlines our position and requests.
Tēnā koe Minister
Rent and lease relief urgently required
Following the Government’s announcement on Wednesday outlining additional fiscal support for small and medium businesses, I am writing to impress upon the Government the desperate situation many hospitality and retailers have found themselves in, and the urgent need for the Government to announce meaningful rent and lease relief.
While last Wednesday’s announcement was devastating for small to medium businesses, I did note your response to media questioning during the April 17 COVID-19 stand up, where you reiterated that Wednesday’s announcement was an interim step, and that the Government continues to “look overall at how we support businesses to get through this. Our focus has been on those that are vulnerable but viable, and we’ll continue to look at that.” The commentary reported from the Minister of Justice’s office however, is less encouraging.
Minister, during our meeting of 12 March I said to you if there was any way our Association could assist the Government in its response, we were absolutely willing and able; this stands true.
Restaurant Association have been working closely with Hon Kris Faafoi on the work he is leading with officials, to ensure there is sufficient coordination for hospitality guidelines as we move to Alert Level 3, and we continue to run our 24/7 phone line to provide up to date information, legal and business support for our members while at the same time getting a real time sense of the grassroot issues affecting our members.
As you will be well aware, fixed costs, such as rent, and lease costs remain a major issue. These costs have continued despite 100% of our member businesses having no ability to generate any revenue over the last month. Level three will provide some relief but it will not be this way for all. There are very few of our industry who are completely set up to thrive at this level. There has been a large amount of work that we at the Association have completed to assist with this, but it will not work for everyone. The wage subsidy was a good start, but it will be meaningless if businesses can’t survive.
Please give urgent consideration to the nature and scope of financial rent and lease relief. I have been discussing this will other business associations and we are all of the same mind support these calls, not just for the hospitality sector, but small to medium businesses industry wide.
Should you wish to discuss this with any of us, please do not hesitate to pick up the phone.
Ngā mihi nui,
Marisa Bidois
Tāhuhu Rangapū (Chief Executive)
Restaurant Association of New Zealand