MORE than a million hospitality workers are at risk of being made redundant over coming months if the Tory government refuses to extend the coronavirus furlough scheme, Labour warned today.

About half of those in the hospitality industry are still on partial or full furlough, according to latest Office for National Statistics data.

Almost one in 10 hospitality businesses believe they may make staff redundant in the next three months.

And about 39 per cent of the firms are at severe or moderate risk of insolvency, latest survey data shows.

The Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme is set to come to an end in April. Labour has called on Chancellor Rishi Sunak to extend it to protect jobs as long as Covid-19 health restrictions remain in place.

Labour is demanding urgent reform to the scheme to include new training incentives to help furloughed workers improve their skills and place conditions on employers to stop abuse.

It is also calling for the reduced rate of VAT for the hospitality, leisure and cultural sectors to continue for another six months or until three months after the lifting of health restrictions — whichever is later.  

Labour shadow minister for business and consumers Lucy Powell said that it would be “economic negligence” for Mr Sunak and PM Boris Johnson “to stand by and watch businesses go to the wall.”

Unite national officer for hospitality Dave Turnbull said that the union supports the position taken by Labour on furlough extension as it “broadly mirrors demands in our own hospitality rescue plan.”

He added: “Tourism and hospitality are vital to the UK economy, therefore all measures to ensure staff and skills retention based on decent terms and conditions beyond April need to be taken as a matter of urgency.”