Latest news with #DominicPaul
Yahoo
03-06-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Hotel group challenges city's 'tourist tax'
A major hotel group is challenging a £2 "tourist tax" charge added to overnight stays for visitors to Liverpool. Whitbread, which owns Premier Inn, said the visitor levy which came into force on Sunday should be voided. The charge was voted for by members of the city's Accommodation Business Improvement District (ABID) in a ballot earlier this year. Of the 83 hotels in Liverpool who were asked, 59% (26) were in favour, on a turnout of 53%. The levy is mandatory for all hotels in the city above a certain rateable value, regardless of whether they took part in the ballot or whether they opposed the charge. According to the ABID, a £2 city charge per room per night could bring in over £9m pounds over two years, to support the visitor economy. However, the idea has had its critics. Whitbread chief executive Dominic Paul has said that hotels, restaurants and bars were being held back by higher labour costs and faced additional burdens from possible surcharges on overnight accommodation. Writing in The Times, he said the hospitality industry "finds itself on the receiving end of a series of government interventions which together will significantly hold back our ability to contribute to growth". The government has confirmed it had received a request from Whitbread for the ballot result to be voided. Liverpool City Council said it was confident the ballot was conducted according to legal requirements, but will look at the concerns raised by the challenge by the deadline of 24 June. A minister will consider the response in determining whether the ballot should be declared void. The government said hotels could continue to collect the cash from visitors, pending the outcome of the challenge, but visitors would be refunded if it is successful. The challenge comes as regional mayors, lead by Liverpool City Region's Steve Rotheram, have asked government to devolve powers to raise such taxes at local level, rather than via a BID ballot which is the only means available at the moment. Harry Doyle, Liverpool City Council's cabinet member for health, wellbeing and culture said Whitbread's challenge "reinforced the council's position and that of the mayors that visitor levies would benefit from a new national arrangement, established under the proposals for devolution." He added: "The case for a visitor levy has been made and is being advocated across the UK." The BBC has contacted Whitbread for comment. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
BBC News
03-06-2025
- Business
- BBC News
Hotel group challenges Liverpool's 'tourist tax'
A major hotel group is challenging a £2 "tourist tax" charge added to overnight stays for visitors to which owns Premier Inn, said the visitor levy which came into force on Sunday should be charge was voted for by members of the city's Accommodation Business Improvement District (ABID) in a ballot earlier this the 83 hotels in Liverpool who were asked, 59% (26) were in favour, on a turnout of 53%. The levy is mandatory for all hotels in the city above a certain rateable value, regardless of whether they took part in the ballot or whether they opposed the charge. According to the ABID, a £2 city charge per room per night could bring in over £9m pounds over two years, to support the visitor the idea has had its chief executive Dominic Paul has said that hotels, restaurants and bars were being held back by higher labour costs and faced additional burdens from possible surcharges on overnight in The Times, he said the hospitality industry "finds itself on the receiving end of a series of government interventions which together will significantly hold back our ability to contribute to growth". Concerns raised The government has confirmed it had received a request from Whitbread for the ballot result to be City Council said it was confident the ballot was conducted according to legal requirements, but will look at the concerns raised by the challenge by the deadline of 24 June.A minister will consider the response in determining whether the ballot should be declared government said hotels could continue to collect the cash from visitors, pending the outcome of the challenge, but visitors would be refunded if it is challenge comes as regional mayors, lead by Liverpool City Region's Steve Rotheram, have asked government to devolve powers to raise such taxes at local level, rather than via a BID ballot which is the only means available at the Doyle, Liverpool City Council's cabinet member for health, wellbeing and culture said Whitbread's challenge "reinforced the council's position and that of the mayors that visitor levies would benefit from a new national arrangement, established under the proposals for devolution."He added: "The case for a visitor levy has been made and is being advocated across the UK."The BBC has contacted Whitbread for comment. Listen to the best of BBC Radio Merseyside on Sounds and follow BBC Merseyside on Facebook, X, and Instagram. You can also send story ideas via Whatsapp to 0808 100 2230.
The Guardian
01-05-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
Profits fall at Premier Inn owner Whitbread amid drop in UK bookings
Profits at the Premier Inn owner Whitbread have fallen after it was hit by higher costs and a drop in UK bookings, but shares rose on the promise of a share buyback and more hotel openings. Britain's largest hotel group, which owns 852 hotels in the UK and 61 in Germany, reported a 14% fall in adjusted pre-tax profit to £483m for the year to 27 February. Revenues dipped by 1% to £2.9bn, as revenue per available room in the UK was down by 2%. Whitbread shares rose by 4% after it brought forward plans to return £2bn to shareholders via share buybacks and dividends by 2030, with a £250m buyback coming later this year. Both business and leisure bookings weakened in the UK, especially in London. Bookings made well in advance and during peak times such as the summer remained robust, while people made fewer short-term bookings than in the previous year. Premier Inn does not usually attract many US travellers. Dominic Paul, the Whitbread chief executive, said there could be an upside for Premier Inn, with European tourists choosing to holiday in the UK rather than the US because of Donald Trump's hostile immigration policy. Weaker demand in the UK was partly offset by stronger growth in Germany, where a fifth of bookings are from people going to sports events or concerts, compared with less than 5% in the UK. 'This will be a breakthrough year in Germany and we are set to deliver our first ever adjusted profit in 2026,' Paul said. Whitbread said it was outperforming the wider UK market and pushing ahead with hotel openings. Along with the rest of the branded budget sector, Premier Inn is expected to grow over the next few years, while independent hotels are predicted to decline further, meaning the overall UK hotel market will not return to 2019 room levels until at least 2027. Faced with rising staff costs from national insurance and the minimum wage hikes, the company has increased its cost savings target from £50m to £60m this year, after cutting £75m in costs last year. It is turning 238 underperforming branded restaurants into hotel rooms. Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: 'It's tough out there for hoteliers but the UK's largest hotel brand is continuing to outperform the competition. The group's sticking to its room opening plan but if the market remains weak, the bottom line will remain under pressure this year. There's little room to push up room rates, and while Whitbread's cost management is impressive, it's still expecting around 2% inflation on UK costs. Sign up to Business Today Get set for the working day – we'll point you to all the business news and analysis you need every morning after newsletter promotion 'The rollout of the much smaller German division continues apace, he added, 'but that's not going to move the dial. 'With significant investment plans on the horizon, management will be hoping the demand picture doesn't deteriorate. That will be down to the health of the global economy, which remains firmly under the cloud of tariff uncertainty.'
Bloomberg
01-05-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Premier Inn Owner Sees an Opportunity in Fewer US-Bound Tourists
Premier Inn-owner Whitbread Plc says its low-cost hotels in the UK could be an unexpected winner from fewer tourists heading to the US and increasingly cost-conscious domestic travelers. 'If European travelers come into the UK more, that could potentially be a benefit to us,' Chief Executive Officer Dominic Paul told Bloomberg in an interview, adding that Premier Inn typically benefits when consumers are under pressure.
The Independent
01-05-2025
- Business
- The Independent
Whitbread profits slide amid restaurant closures and ‘softer' UK demand
Premier Inn owner Whitbread has revealed a drop in profits on the back of its recent restaurant closures and 'softer' UK demand for hotel rooms. The company, which also owns Beefeater restaurants, told shareholders that adjusted pre-tax profits fell by 14% to £483 million in the year to February, compared with the previous year. It said this was driven by higher costs and the impact of Whitbread's growth strategy from last April, which included an overhaul of its restaurant business. The £500 million plan, which executives dubbed 'Accelerating Growth', involved converting 112 branded restaurants and selling 126 more. The company hopes this will help it build about 3,500 extra hotel rooms, eventually reaching 97,000 rooms in total. Chief executive Dominic Paul said the plan is 'progressing well' in the UK and Ireland. The disposal and closure of a raft of restaurants led to a significant slump in food and drink sales, which dropped 11% year-on-year in the UK as the shake-up wiped out the benefit from strong breakfast sales. It contributed to a 1% decline in revenues across the group to £2.92 billion for the year. Meanwhile, the group's Premier Inn UK business saw revenues per available room dip 2% due to 'softer UK market demand' as the higher cost of living put pressure on consumer finances. Whitbread said however that Premier Inn benefited from further openings, with the group's continued expansion adding another 1,075 hotel rooms over the past year. Mr Paul added: 'Having laid the foundations for significant growth, we are executing at pace and making excellent progress on our strategic initiatives, against what has been a softer market backdrop over the past year. 'By focusing on what we can control, our five-year plan is on track to deliver a step-change in our profits, margins and returns and we remain positive about the medium-term outlook.' Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown, said: 'Investors in Premier Inn owner Whitbread won't be losing too much sleep over today's final results, which have come in a little better than analysts had been forecasting. 'It's tough out there for hoteliers but the UK's largest hotel brand is continuing to outperform the competition. 'Domestic room openings offset a small drop in occupancy and room rates, but it takes time for new beds to match the profitability of the existing estate.'
