NCTA England’s Coast November Update

"Given that the Office for Budget Responsibility has lowered its growth forecasts for the next two years believing inflation will stay higher for longer, it can be hard to have an optimistic outlook for the tourism industry.

Yet there were positive headlines in the Chancellor’s Autumn Statement, the extension to 2025 for the 75% business rates relief for hospitality, retail and leisure is welcome news. Jeremy Hunt also confirmed that the National Living Wage would rise from £10.42 per hour to £11.44 from April, helping the lowest paid workers but meaning a wages bill increase of 9.8% for employers. The cut in the National Insurance rate from 12% to 10% was another win for employees.

As businesses digest the Chancellor’s measures, it’s been encouraging to hear Baroness Doocey highlighting the challenges of coastal tourism in the House of Lords, she cited our recent business survey results: “[Coastal] Communities are highly dependent on tourism, with the industry supporting half the jobs in places such as Whitby and St Ives…Covid hit them disproportionately – 90% of the areas that suffered the biggest job losses were on the coast.

“Now a crisis is looming, with a third of coastal businesses not confident about trading over the next six months and four out of every 10 expecting to close during the winter to boost their chances of survival.”

Thank you for completing these surveys, they provide vital evidence and go some way to ensuring the coast is not ignored."

Read the full update here