È ora di chiamarlo: non ci sono prove di una crisi di chiusura del ristorante irlandese
https://www.thejournal.ie/no-evidence-restaurant-closures-crisis-vat-rate-6803783-Aug2025/
di HugoFitzroyGallagher
È ora di chiamarlo: non ci sono prove di una crisi di chiusura del ristorante irlandese
https://www.thejournal.ie/no-evidence-restaurant-closures-crisis-vat-rate-6803783-Aug2025/
di HugoFitzroyGallagher
18 commenti
I guarantee that if they get 9% now, they’ll come back in 2-3 years asking for 7.5%.
About time someone challenged this “truth”, it’s probably the most difficult business to enter with the greatest pressure to quickly bridge the gap between initial expenditure and future income. Fixing the blame on one input which is conveniently simple and in the control of the government is handy for the sector lobby group. The minister needs to find proof of the standard Vat rate having a specific negative impact rather than just caving in to noise.
What’s going on?
Actual journalism in TheJournal? Honestly, I am impressed….
Such a waste of money. Restaurants always have high closure rates and high opening rates. Employment is up and the number of food and beverage places are at a constant level.
If your margins aren’t high enough cut costs or raise prices. If your customers go away then, I’m sorry, you don’t have a successful business. That’s how it is for every other business, most of whom pay 23% VAT.
The restaurant industry pays the lowest salaries of any sector. It’s the last one we should be arbitrarily subsidising. Spend the €750m in healthcare, housing, infrastructure, literally anything else.
In my area I know of a couple that have closed in the last 2 or 3 years. Both have reopened under new management. And there are at least 3 new cafe/restaurants.
They are under no more stress than anyone else in the economy. They just have a better lobby group. If we give them the VAT cut they will just pocket it.
There is a unit in my local town that has had a number of operators over the years, while one or two have closed, the majority of them have gone on to bigger units, and there seems to be no end of people willing to rent it.
The VAT rate will be dropped and the punter will still be expected to pay €16 for Penne Arrabbitia.
As someone who ate out religiously, at least once a week, I just can’t do it anymore, it’s not that I can’t afford it, but the pricing is disgusting.
There is no value, the price is too high, the quantity is too small, and the quality, don’t get me started on the quality of food in most places.
I pointed this out more than a year ago on here. My point was “RAI will always mention the closures but not the net figure”.
It’s total bullshit. There is always a big churn/turnover in hospitality businesses because they’re frequently run by people who have no experience and make poor decisions. There’s lots of “I make a better coffee than that place!” types who open something up and make crap decisions.
I love the part where they call out the Times, the Independent, RTE, and the Guardian for their bad coverage.
At a more fundemental level, I’ve never understood why this segment of the economy should get a tax break. Restaurants open and close. It’s a tough industry. But why does that mean they get to pay less VAT than other industries?
If we extend that logic, any industry that might have trouble or pressure on their margins or their input costs can also only pay 9% VAT, assuming their industry group can get fluff pieces in RTE or Irish Times? Doesn’t seem like an effective way to manage tax.
If a restaurant is going to live or die by the VAT rate, it’s probably not a great restaurant, and probably should go out of business.
The data generally supports a picture of rising activity, not falling activity. There is a lot of pressure on small restaurants and cafes for sure, but when is there not? It’s a high turnover business.
Fundamentally giving a €600m tax cut to the sector is bonkers, particularly considering a major slice of that is going to go to McDonald’s etc.
I’m not being smart but why are the pub and restaurant industry immune to failure?
What I mean by that isz why in any other industry if you set up a business and final it’s just the market, but if you set up a pub or restaurant it seems you have the gov bending over backwards to keep you open.
I don’t understand, even if there was a wave of closures, surely that just means that the market has dictated that there ISNT a market for such business. What’s wrong with that?
So the government are apparently setting VAT rates on vibes rather than analytics now lol
The restaurants association is one of the most powerful lobby groups in the country. If anyone in government honestly thinks they’ll cut their prices after this I’ve got a bridge to sell them.
“Okay we lowered VAT, are you going to lower your prices?”
“………….no”
An acquaintance from a large accounting firm explained to me that many establishments were given huge concessions during CoVid and these had come due now in recent years. Alot of places simply close and go bankrupt only to re-establish elsewhere with new names.
How anyone ever bought this is beyond me. Restaurants are absolutely booming. Shite restaurants are closing, just like they always do.
I used to work with the restaurant industry 10 years ago. The general rule was 50% don’t make it past 12 months.
There’s a crisis of things not existing in the first place.