Workers of England Union Warns Beefeater Closures Are Part of a Much Wider Threat.

PRESS RELEASE – FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

The Workers of England Union (WEU) is warning that the closure of Beefeater and other well-known restaurant brands should be seen as a warning sign for the future of England’s hospitality industry.

Whitbread is closing its remaining 106 Beefeater restaurants in September, alongside 89 Brewers Fayre sites and its remaining Table Table, Cookhouse + Pub, and Bar + Block restaurants as the company restructures its operations around Premier Inn.

But the problem extends far beyond one company.

The higher taxation on businesses has a negative effect all round, instead of generating the extra taxation the government wants it creates less, less business rates, less taxes from employees, less taxes from suppliers, less taxes from purchasers, and increases the welfare bill if those people can't find alternative employment. Higher taxation creates less tax if businesses close.

The Scale of Hospitality Closures

During 2025, 366 pubs permanently disappeared across England and Wales through demolition or conversion to other uses. Analysis of national figures shows that 338 of those losses were in England, more than 92 per cent of the total.

The pressure has continued into 2026. Across Britain, licensed hospitality premises recorded a net decline of 305 sites during the first three months of the year.

The WEU says the combination of business rates, employment costs, energy bills, food and drink inflation, and weaker consumer spending is creating an increasingly difficult environment for hospitality businesses.

Impact on Communities and Regional Economies

Stephen Morris, General Secretary of the Workers of England Union, said:

“We need to ask what we want our towns and high streets to look like in five or ten years’ time. Empty buildings and darkened premises benefit nobody. Hospitality gives places character, brings people into town centres and creates economic activity that spreads far beyond the individual business.

“England has already seen too many familiar establishments disappear. We should not accept continued decline as inevitable. There needs to be a genuine national effort to make this sector an attractive place to invest, build a career and run a successful business.”

The WEU is calling for greater recognition of hospitality as an important part of England’s economy and for the Government to examine whether the cumulative burden of taxation and operating costs is making otherwise viable businesses unsustainable.

The Workers of England Union clearly states that protecting hospitality is not simply about protecting large restaurant or pub chains. Thousands of jobs and smaller businesses depend upon the sector, including food producers, breweries, farmers, delivery companies, cleaners, maintenance businesses, and local suppliers.

The closure of famous names such as Beefeater may attract the headlines, but the WEU warns that the gradual disappearance of independent pubs, restaurants, and hotels from communities across England could ultimately have an even greater impact. Learn more about our workplace rights support and economic campaigns.

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