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Star Pubs & Bars to extend rent relief throughout July and August

08-Jun-2020 - Last updated on 09-Jun-2020 at 08:31 GMT

Welcome relief: the extension of rent relief until the end of August will take Star's total spend on rent concessions past the £20m mark

Heineken’s pub arm Star Pubs & Bars has extended rent relief for leased and tenanted pub operators throughout July and August amid the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic, taking its total rent concession spending to around £21m.

According to the operator’s latest statement, two thirds of its core leased and tenanted pubs have received a rent concession of between 50% and 75% since pubs closed on 20 March, while a third have received a concession of 75% or more.

The announcement that Star, which operates around 2,500 pubs across the UK, will continue this relief until the end of August means it will have invested approximately £21m into rent concessions since 20 March when Prime Minister Boris Johnson called last orders in Britain’s pubs.

“Throughout this crisis, we have worked with every pub individually to provide support and I’m grateful to all our licensees who have trusted us to do the right thing by them,” Star Pubs & Bars managing director Lawson Mountstevens said.

“Our business is built on those partnerships and we want to do everything we can to help make sure their businesses are sustainable long-term.

“We hope that the extension of the concessions offered can provide a degree of certainty to our pubs, as we all turn our collective focus on the complex task of reopening.

“Once restrictions are lifted, we want to see all of our pubs open, trading and operating as viable businesses as soon as possible. With lockdown measures starting to be eased, it’s important that we take a lead in making sure every pub has enhanced health and safety measures to make sure people feel safe when they revisit their local.”

Star’s latest announcement comes after the initial suspension of rent collection, trade debt and associated charges on 18 March, before rent reductions to all leased and tenanted pubs on an individual basis were announced on 8 April.

What's more, on the same day that Star announced the extension of rent concessions until the end of August, family brewer Hall & Woodhouse also revealed that its publicans would not have to pay rent for eight weeks after the Government confirms pubs can reopen.

However, as reported by The Morning Advertiser (MA), while the Government previously earmarked 4 July as the earliest possible day for pubs to reopen, a number of ministers are believed to be working to resume trading as early as 22 June.

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