Wetherspoons plans to reopen pubs and hotels ‘in or around June’
WETHERSPOONS is starting to plan for a reopening of its pubs and hotels "in or around June", the company has announced.
Pubs were forced to close on March 20, four days before the country went into lockdown due to the coronavirus crisis.
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Wetherspoons is working on plans to implement social distancing measures in its pubs.
It said its pubs are "substantially larger than average...and most have outdoor facilities".
Wetherspoons, one of the biggest chains in the UK, has 879 pubs.
MPs have previously suggested that pubs will be one of the last sectors to reopen.
And a government adviser said they they could restrict drinkers to just three pints per person.
Wetherspoons spokesman Eddie Gershon said: "Wetherspoons has no hotline to the government as to when pubs might be permitted to reopen and we doubt if the government itself has yet made a decision on this.
"Like all companies we are trying to make a plan for the future and are guessing that they may be allowed to reopen in late June, around three months after they closed.
"However, that is just an estimate and may prove to be entirely incorrect.
"Wetherspoons, like all pub companies, closed its doors when ordered to do so by the government – and will only reopen when it is permitted to do so."
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Tim Martin, founder of the pub chain, was forced into an embarrassing U-turn last month after initially refusing to pay staff when the government asked pubs to shut.
He told its 43,000 staff to find jobs in supermarkets until the chain could reopen.
The founder tonight said he will take a 50 per cent voluntary pay cut, along with chief executive John Hutson.
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Mr Martin also revealed the Government's business rates holiday has saved his firm around £60 million and he is looking at applying for a Bank of England loan for large companies.
However, the loan may not be possible due to Wetherspoon's not being an "investment grade" business on some measures, the firm said.
To stem the flow of cash leaving the company, shareholders will also be tapped up for around £141 million through a fundraiser by issuing new shares.