Hospitality Businesses

Part of 1. Questions to the Minister for Economy and Transport and North Wales – in the Senedd at 2:24 pm on 7 October 2020.

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Photo of Ken Skates Ken Skates Labour 2:24, 7 October 2020

I am extremely aware of the challenge that the hospitality sector is facing right now, but I have to say that small exceptions in isolation might be one thing, but once you grant an exception to one subsector for one particular area of activity, the door is then blown open for others to demand exceptions as well. In the aggregate, that can have a major impact on our ability to bring down transmission numbers. Of course, we will listen to any calls for exceptions, but there has to be an extraordinarily compelling reason to allow exceptions during these difficult times, because if we don't get transmission rates under control, particularly in those areas where there are restrictions, we will unfortunately see those restrictions last for longer. There is a role for all of us, as Caroline Jones has outlined this afternoon, not just to consider what we can and cannot do by the law, but also what we should and should not do as individuals responsible for one another. That does mean acting responsibly, it does mean taking responsibility not just for one's own life and behaviour but also for one's family and the community in which we live. We have to get through this as a team, as a society, and so whilst I've listened to calls for exceptions like the one that the Member has outlined, as I say, it would have to be a very, very compelling argument to support it.