Yorkshire Wildlife Park warns it 'cannot sustain cost of lockdown forever'

Officials at the 150-acre Yorkshire Wildlife Park say the current crisis is costing it £300,000 a month in looking after and feeding the animals and maintaining the park, and are urging the Government to review restrictions on opening ahead of a parliamentary debate on the issue on Thursday (June 11).

MP’s will discuss the crisis facing zoos and aquariums as they remain on the list of businesses that must stay closed. Andrew Rosindell MP, chair of the parliamentay group for Zoos and Aquariums says if zoos cannot open soon many will not survive the crisis.

John Minion, chief executive of the park at Branton, said: “Like other zoos and parks, we have highly dedicated staff team who are working to give the best care to our animals throughout the lockdown. That still has to be funded and we cannot sustain this drain on our resources forever.

“The safety and health of our animals, our staff team and our visitors is paramount. We have carried out detailed planning to look at how we can control numbers through advance ticket sales and time slots and how we needed to adapt the site and our protocols for visitor management and cleaning in line with Government guidance.

“Many zoos have now opened up in Europe, Ireland and in Jersey and we have been learning from their experiences.

“The park is home to more than 450 animals, including many endangered species, and we are a centre for educational and conservation work, which has had to be put on hold. We are calling on the government to reconsider their decision so that we can welcome our visitors again.”

YWP attracted over 760,000 visitors last year and employs nearly 250 staff and 980 suppliers.

Nick Fletcher, MP for Don Valley said: “As an expansive outdoor site, and with a team that has the experience and resources to limit the numbers on site and educate visitors on how to be safe during their visit, it is hard to believe that Yorkshire Wildlife Park cannot open but shopping centres and public spaces with no control of numbers can.“