The Scottish government has told tourism and hospitality
businesses such as accommodation providers, pubs and restaurants to prepare to
reopen on 15 July as the country continues to ease its coronavirus lockdown
restrictions.
Tourism secretary Fergus Ewing gave businesses the date Wednesday
but said the planned reopening would be conditional on the government moving
the country to phase three of its route map for coming out of lockdown, with a
decision due by 9 July. Ewing also announced the formation of a new taskforce that
will focus on the sector’s recovery needs, actions being taken by the UK
government and the development of a new domestic visitor marketing campaign,
according to the BBC.
Scotland is also requesting more action from the UK
government to support tourism businesses as they recover from the crisis,
including a review of VAT rates and potential extensions to the coronavirus job
retention scheme.
If the planned reopening goes ahead on 15 July, businesses
such as hotels, bars and restaurants will have to follow new health and safety
guidelines.
Hotels, pubs and restaurants in England have been told they could
reopen on 4 July if the government moves to the next phase of easing
restrictions, while accommodation providers in Northern Ireland could be given
the go-ahead to start trading on 20 July. The Welsh Parliament has not yet put
a timeline on restarting its tourism sector.
Despite these reopening dates, international visitors to the UK could still be required to self-isolate for 14 days on arrival, as the government has not definitively committed to a timeline for easing travel restrictions or forming air bridges with countries that have low infection rates.