UK hospitality brings in more than £100b

Revenue from the UK's hospitality industry has passed £100b for the first time, Caterer can reveal.

According to the British Hospitality Association's (BHA's) Trends and Statistics 2006, due out later this week, the industry - including the leisure and tourism sectors - is now worth £102b, £20b more than last year and £27b more than the Government's current estimate of £75b.

The 20% increase is largely a result of more in-depth research by the British Beer & Pub Association (BBPA) into alcohol sales, which estimates out-of-home drinking expenditure at £34.9b, more than double last year's government-based figure of £15.9b.

Peter Backman, managing director of market consultancy Horizons FS, which compiled the report, said: "We have aligned our alcohol statistics with the research done by the BBPA, so data being used by the industry is now consistent.

"This means the Government's original target of £100b by 2010 has already been reached," Backman added. "However, the industry still hasn't reached its full potential."

After out-of-home drinking, out-of-home dining accounts for the second-biggest portion of the industry's turnover, at £19.6b, while overnight accommodation was worth £10.5b and social clubs and gambling sectors each took a £4.9b share.

Overall the hospitality industry now employs almost two million people, with more than 1.25 million (67%) working in hotels, restaurants, pubs, clubs, bars and contract catering.

Trends and Statistics 2006 estimates that more than 120 hotels (with a total of more than 10,000 new-built bedrooms) will have opened in the UK between September 2005 and December 2006, mainly in the budget hotel sector, representing a £1.25b investment.

BHA chief executive Bob Cotton said: "The industry continues to be in a very expansionary mood. This level of investment does more to raise standards and improve quality than all the government regulations put together."

By Kerstin Kühn

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