Mr. Tim Fenn:

We also have to look in the round at what has been happening over time. Last summer, we were dealing with significant pent-up demand. We also had deferred business from 2020 and 2021, and there was a backlog of events compressed into June and July. This was a massive challenge because of the capacity we had in the system. We are now facing a completely different scenario because the economic outlook in our source markets is very challenging. The UK is going into recession. Prior to Covid, the UK generated 35% to 40% of our business. That means a massive challenge. The same applies to other countries in Europe. There is inflation right across the various economies because of the war. That is reducing consumer sentiment, which in itself will have a dampening effect on where we are going next year. It is very difficult to pinpoint where this is going to land. There are so many variables and not all of them are good. We are just trying to be as resilient as we can to ensure our business focuses on the long-term sustainable growth of the industry over time.

It is worth saying also that, during Covid, employment in the industry took a significant hit. We are making great progress on that. We are back to 90% of the number before the pandemic, although we still have a way to go to rebuild the skill base in the industry. Every one of these hits is a genuine challenge for us. In this regard, the cost of doing business has been mentioned. This is a time when we ask the Government to rethink its approach to adding another 50% to the VAT rate at the end of February. It will be just another hit on the industry.