‘I don’t get the logic:’ Worried landlord speaks out as pubs in Sheffield prepare to close

But one landlord has questioned the reasoning, with official statistics showing far fewer Covid-19 outbreaks linked to the hospitality industry than to schools, universities and workplaces.

Boris Johnson is reportedly considering ordering pubs and restaurants across much of northern England to close from as early as Monday, following a similar shutdown in central Scotland, as infections continue to surge.

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With Sheffield’s weekly infection rate of 358.2 new cases per 100,000 people now the eighth highest in England, and a local lockdown expected imminently, it is likely to be included in those plans.

But David Kay, who owns the Queen’s Head pub in High Green and has previously criticised the 10pm curfew imposed on pubs and restaurants, does not understand the thinking behind such a move.

“Pubs and restaurants are doing everything possible to ensure they’re as safe as can be. With all the measures in place we’re nearly as sterile as a theatre,” he said.

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"The Government just seems to pick on the hospitality industry, probably because we’re all licensed and they know that if we don’t do what we’re told they can take our licences away.

"I’m expecting them to tell pubs and restaurants to close but I don’t get the logic. Why don’t we close schools and universities, and move education online, because the evidence shows that’s where the virus is more likely to spread.

"If pubs are told to close it gives people the impression we’re the problem, which we’re not.

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“Since Monday we’ve been having daily beer deliveries rather than weekly ones to help manage our stock levels, because we don’t want to end up with a lot of wastage like last time.

“We’re alright for now but if there is another lockdown then tenants in pub companies will be handing in their keys left, right and centre.”

According to the latest weekly surveillance report from Public Health England, just four per cent of known coronavirus outbreaks were linked to restaurants or other food outlets, compared with 38 per cent for educational settings, 26 per cent in the workplace and 18 per cent at care homes.

Joseph Cribley, who owns the Mexican bar and restaurant Piña in Kelham Island, believes the hospitality industry has been treated unfairly as a ‘headline generator’.

"The hospitality industry as a whole has really bent over backwards to provide the safest environment we can. We've done everything expected of us and more both at Pina and within the industry as a whole to ensure customers are safe," he said.

"The statistics don't seem to be married with the policies particularly well. I think it's hovered between the three and five per cent mark according to government data when it comes to the number of infections outside the home that are linked to pubs or restaurants.

"It's hard to understand why they're imposing policies in reaction to what's a relatively small percentage of infections linked to the hospitality industry.

"It does feel like we're a bit of a headline generator. When they introduced the curfew it felt like a punishment for the general public, almost as if they were being told you've had too much fun….”